TikTok gave thousands of users, including children and teenagers, nonfunctional versions of a safety feature during experiments, according to allegations in a newly unsealed New York lawsuit. The claims could deepen legal pressure on the platform and raise questions about whether users can trust controls intended to manage recommended content.
What the lawsuit alleges
According to Reuters, TikTok ran so-called “ghost” or placebo experiments in 2023 involving users who attempted to activate safety tools. Some participants allegedly received a version of Algo Refresh that appeared to work but did not reset their recommendations.
TikTok describes its refresh feature as a way to reshape a user’s For You feed. The New York allegations say some users believed they had activated the feature while their feeds remained unchanged. Other users received a functioning version, allowing TikTok to compare behavior, time spent on the platform and advertising revenue, according to the lawsuit.
The allegations are claims made in litigation, not findings that TikTok violated the law. A TikTok spokesperson told Reuters that the allegations mischaracterize how Algo Refresh works and said the company regularly tests new products and features. The case is one of more than two dozen state lawsuits alleging that TikTok designed its service to encourage addictive use among children and misled the public about youth safety.
Why it matters
The case focuses on a basic expectation behind any safety control: when a user turns it on, the control should perform the stated function. If the allegations are proven, testing a nonworking version on children and teens could make TikTok’s safety messaging and product-design practices central issues in court.
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced a separate consumer-protection lawsuit against TikTok on October 8. That complaint also alleges that TikTok withheld safety features from some users and used placebo testing that misrepresented the existence of safety features.
TikTok’s own help materials say users can refresh their For You feed, filter keywords, manage topics and indicate that they are not interested in particular posts. Those tools can influence recommendations, but they are not guarantees that unwanted or harmful content will never appear.
What users can do
- Use TikTok’s refresh, keyword-filtering and “Not interested” controls, then monitor the feed to see whether recommendations change.
- Report videos or accounts that appear dangerous, exploitative or inappropriate for minors.
- Parents should review TikTok’s Family Pairing and screen-time options with children and consider device-level controls as an additional layer.
- Keep records of safety-setting problems, including dates and screenshots, if a feature appears not to work as described.
The lawsuit will now test whether TikTok’s internal experimentation crossed the line from ordinary product testing into deceptive conduct. The outcome could influence how social platforms design, disclose and validate safety features used by young people.
References
Novak Jones, D. (2026, October 7). TikTok gave teens, children placebo safety feature in experiment, New York alleges. Reuters. https://www.marketscreener.com/news/tiktok-gave-teens-children-placebo-safety-feature-in-experiment-new-york-alleges-ce785ddedc8af025
Malik, A. (2026, October 8). New York alleges TikTok gave teens, children a placebo safety feature instead of a real one. TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/08/new-york-alleges-tiktok-gave-teens-children-a-placebo-safety-feature-instead-of-a-real-one/
Arizona Attorney General’s Office. (2026, October 8). Attorney General Mayes sues TikTok for harming Arizona youth. https://www.azag.gov/press-release/attorney-general-mayes-sues-tiktok-harming-arizona-youth
TikTok. (2023, March 16). Introducing a way to refresh your For You feed on TikTok. TikTok Newsroom. https://newsroom.tiktok.com/introducing-a-way-to-refresh-your-for-you-feed-on-tiktok-us?lang=en
TikTok. (2026). How TikTok recommends content on the For You feed. TikTok Help Center. https://support.tiktok.com/en/getting-started/for-you/test-for-you
Office of the New York Attorney General. (2024). Complaint, People of the State of New York v. TikTok Inc., Index No. 452749/2024. https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/court-filings/3_redacted_complaint_signed-003.pdf