A French parliamentary committee chairman said Thursday he has referred TikTok to the Paris public prosecutor, asking for a criminal probe into the video-sharing app over findings that it has “deliberately endangered the health and lives” of child users.
Arthur Delaporte, the Socialist lawmaker who chairs the committee set up to examine TikTok’s psychological effects on minors, told broadcaster franceinfo the panel’s conclusion was unequivocal and that he had asked prosecutors to consider offences including active complicity and perjury by company executives who, he said, told the committee they were unaware of harms.
The committee, launched in March and which unveiled its findings on Thursday, recommended that children under 15 be banned from using social media and that those aged 15 to 18 face a nighttime curfew that would make social media unavailable between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. The measures were presented as part of a broader set of proposals aimed at protecting minors from what the panel described as significant psychological risks linked to algorithm-driven platforms.
The inquiry was prompted in part by a 2024 lawsuit brought by seven families who accused TikTok of exposing their children to content that encouraged self-harm and suicide. The committee said its review of evidence and testimony supported its conclusion that the platform’s practices had endangered young people.
TikTok responded through a spokesperson who said the company “categorically reject[s] the Commission’s misleading presentation, which seeks to make our company a scapegoat for issues that concern the entire sector and society as a whole.” The spokesperson said the platform has “demanding” safety policies and features aimed at protecting teenagers and their families.
It is now up to the Paris public prosecutor to decide whether to open a formal criminal investigation. French law allows prosecutors to open inquiries when alleged actions rise to the level of criminal offences; investigators would then determine whether there is sufficient evidence to bring charges.
The committee’s report and Delaporte’s referral come amid heightened scrutiny of social media companies in France and beyond. French President Emmanuel Macron said in June he would press for European Union-wide regulation to ban social media access for children under 15 following a fatal stabbing at a school in eastern France. Several countries, including Australia and multiple European states, have already taken or are considering measures to curb underage social media use.
TikTok, which like other platforms relies on algorithmic recommendations, has faced sustained criticism over how it moderates content and the potential mental-health effects of its feed on young users. Lawmakers and regulators in several jurisdictions have investigated whether platforms’ design and content moderation practices contribute to harm and whether existing rules adequately protect minors.
The parliamentary panel did not itself bring criminal charges but said its findings justified referral to prosecutors. The report’s recommendations, if adopted by lawmakers or regulators, would represent some of the most stringent controls on minors’ social media use proposed in Europe. Any legal case or regulatory changes that follow will likely hinge on technical assessments of platform algorithms, internal company practices, and the extent to which company decisions can be linked to specific harms to minors.
Delaporte said the committee had worked to gather evidence and testimony over several months and argued that the scale and recurrence of harmful outcomes warranted criminal scrutiny. TikTok’s refusal to accept the committee’s characterisation of the evidence sets the stage for a potential legal clash if prosecutors decide to pursue the matter.
Prosecutors have not yet indicated whether they will open an investigation. If they do, any probe would add to ongoing debates in France and across the EU about how to balance protection of children, freedom of expression and the responsibilities of global tech platforms.