Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, alleging the app exposes children to addictive features and potential contact with predators.
The 49-page complaint was filed in Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas. Sunday said the lawsuit seeks changes to how Snapchat markets and advertises its platform, design changes intended to discourage compulsive use, and additional safeguards allowing families more control over what children can access online.
The lawsuit focuses in part on Snapchat’s disappearing photos, videos and messages, known as snaps. Content is designed to disappear after 24 hours. Sunday said that feature may give users, including children as young as 13, a false sense of security because content can still be saved through screenshots or other means.
The attorney general’s office also cited Snapchat’s engagement features. According to the complaint, users open the app an average of 30 times per day. Snapchat also assigns users “snap scores,” which increase based on activity on the platform.
Sunday said those features can encourage teenagers to spend more time on the app and contribute to fears of missing out or being socially excluded.
State Sen. Tracy Pennycuick, R-Red Hill, joined Sunday in discussing concerns about social media use among children and teenagers. Pennycuick has sponsored two laws increasing penalties involving AI-generated deepfakes depicting child sexual abuse material. She and Sunday have also worked on a task force examining emerging online risks and possible protections.
Gov. Josh Shapiro has previously said he supports digital literacy education for children rather than outright bans on social media. His administration has also called for stronger regulation of artificial intelligence chatbots used by children.
In June, Shapiro’s administration sued Character.AI, alleging the company represented its chatbot as a licensed medical professional to child users.
