New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin (D) announced on Thursday that the state had filed a lawsuit against the messaging application Discord.
Platkin claimed that Discord has engaged in “unlawful practices that expose NJ kids to violent, sexual content and online child predators.” He further accused the platform of “deceptive and unconscionable business practices.”
‘Discord markets itself as a safe space for children, despite being fully aware that the application’s misleading safety settings and lax oversight has made it a prime hunting ground for online predators seeking easy access to children.’
According to the AG, Discord “misled parents into thinking its app was a safe space for kids despite knowing it was a hunting ground for sexual predators.”
More specifically, the lawsuit called out the platform’s direct messaging safety settings as being deceptive to parents. Discord’s safety messaging features automatically scan and delete messages containing explicit content.
Despite the alleged safety features, lurking predators are still able to “stalk, contact, and victimize children,” the lawsuit stated. The AG’s office noted that the platform “fell, and continues to fall, flat.”
Additionally, the platform allegedly misrepresented that children under 13 years old could not create an account. The complaint stated that Discord requires users only to enter their date of birth and does not perform any additional checks to verify age.
Platkin stated, “Discord markets itself as a safe space for children, despite being fully aware that the application’s misleading safety settings and lax oversight has made it a prime hunting ground for online predators seeking easy access to children.”
“These deceptive claims regarding its safety settings have allowed Discord to attract a growing number of children to use its application, where they are at risk. We intend to put a stop to this unlawful conduct and hold Discord accountable for the harm it has caused our children,” he added.
During a Thursday press conference, Platkin noted that the messaging platform “has been at the center of numerous criminal cases involving predators that were found to have used the app to engage in sexual grooming, extortion, and exploitation.”
New Jersey’s lawsuit resulted from a multiyear investigation by the AG and the Division of Consumer Affairs, which released an informational video explaining the basis of the state’s complaint.
New Jersey is the first state in the nation to sue Discord over its alleged failure to protect children online.
A Discord spokesperson told NBC News, “Discord is proud of our continuous efforts and investments in features and tools that help make Discord safer.”
“Given our engagement with the Attorney General’s office, we are surprised by the announcement that New Jersey has filed an action against Discord today. We dispute the claims in the lawsuit and look forward to defending the action in court,” the spokesperson said.
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