A federal judge in Los Angeles has indicated he will reject a major provision of TikTok and ByteDance's $400 million privacy settlement with the US Justice Department, casting uncertainty over the future of the landmark agreement.
A federal judge has raised serious concerns about a critical part of the $400 million settlement between TikTok, its parent company ByteDance, and the US government, signalling he is unlikely to approve the request to terminate long-standing privacy oversight requirements. US District Judge George H. Wu issued the tentative ruling on Friday, September 19, scheduling a hearing for the following Monday to further review the matter. At issue is TikTok's bid to end a 2019 consent decree imposed by the Federal Trade Commission — an order that mandates strict privacy safeguards, reporting obligations, and record-keeping practices that remain in effect until 2029.
Judge Wu stated he could not conclude that terminating the decree would provide a durable solution or that the proposed changes were appropriately matched to the circumstances cited by the parties. The settlement, reached in August, called for an immediate payment of $300 million, with an additional $100 million due only if the court agreed to lift the 2019 order. The original case stemmed from allegations that Musical.ly — the platform later absorbed into TikTok — collected personal information from children under the age of 13 without obtaining parental consent, in violation of federal law. That matter was settled with a $5.7 million fine, but the consent decree imposed ongoing compliance obligations designed to protect young users.
The broader $400 million agreement arises from a separate 2024 Justice Department lawsuit accusing TikTok and ByteDance of systematically failing to protect children's privacy and illegally gathering personal data. In their defence, the companies have pointed to sweeping changes since the suit was filed, including restructuring ownership, overhauling management, strengthening compliance systems, and implementing new privacy protocols. Most notably, ByteDance agreed in January to establish a majority American-owned joint venture intended to shield US user data from foreign access and prevent a national ban on the platform used by more than 200 million Americans.
In court filings, the TikTok US joint venture outlined additional safeguards: all users must now provide their date of birth to access the service, and advanced age-detection tools have been deployed to identify accounts belonging to children who falsely claim to be older. Despite these measures, Judge Wu's hesitation suggests the court remains unconvinced that the proposed settlement adequately addresses long-term privacy risks or that the changes justify ending independent oversight. TikTok and the Justice Department have not yet issued public statements in response to the judge's preliminary stance. The outcome of the Monday hearing will determine whether the settlement proceeds in its current form, is revised, or is rejected entirely — with significant implications for the platform's legal standing and future operations in the United States.
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