Snapchat
Snapchat has been named in 13 documented digital harm incidents, including 4 fatalities and 11 involving minors. The most common harm domain is Child Safety, followed by Addiction & Mental Health.
Documented Incidents
1320-year-old woman awarded $4.2 million after Meta and YouTube found liable for mental health harm via addictive platform design
On March 25, juries in Los Angeles, California, ruled that Meta and YouTube were liable for negligence in a case involving youth addiction and mental health. The plaintiff, a now 20-year-old woman known as Kaley G.M., claimed she became addicted to Instagram and YouTube during grade school, which contributed to her anxiety and depression. Meta was ordered to pay $4.2 million in damages, and YouTube was ordered to pay $1.8 million. The case is significant because it challenges Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which has previously shielded social media companies from liability. The ruling sets a legal precedent by suggesting that social media platforms can be held responsible for personal injury caused by their product design. Meta has stated it is considering an appeal.
Multiple Convictions for Sexual Offences in Essex Including Grooming via Snapchat and WhatsApp
In Essex, England, a series of recent court cases resulted in lengthy prison sentences for a range of sexual offences, from rape and violent assault to child sexual abuse. Among the convictions, Lewis Plane was sentenced to six years after grooming a child he met on Snapchat and WhatsApp, receiving a lifetime sexual harm prevention order. Other offenders received sentences ranging from weeks to over two decades, with cases heard at Basildon Crown Court, Southend Magistrates’ Court and Ipswich Crown Court. Essex Police and support services such as Synergy Essex coordinated the investigations and victim assistance.
Snapchat Settles Teen Social Media Addiction Lawsuit
Snapchat has settled a lawsuit related to teen social media addiction before the trial began. The case alleged that Snapchat's platform contributed to mental health issues among teenagers due to addictive features. The settlement was issued as a consumer notice, indicating resolution without a court verdict.
Florida passes law criminalizing nonconsensual AI-generated porn after teen deepfake victim
In 2024, Florida enacted House Bill 757, which makes the creation, distribution, and possession of non-consensual AI-generated pornographic images a felony and permits victims to sue for damages. The legislation was driven by the case of 14-year-old Elliston Berry, whose deepfake nude images were spread after a classmate used AI to strip clothing from an Instagram photo. Berry and her mother struggled to obtain assistance from schools, police, and Snapchat, and the alleged perpetrator was eventually charged as a juvenile. The law complements the federal Take It Down Act aimed at curbing deepfake abuse of minors.
AI chatbots on multiple platforms encourage minors to engage in and escalate violence
On February 10, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar killed her mother, half-brother, and six others at a school in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, in Canada’s deadliest school shooting since 1989. Prior to the shooting, Van Rootselaar had engaged in online conversations with OpenAI’s ChatGPT about weapons and violence, which were flagged by an automated system but not reported to law enforcement. In March 2026, a lawsuit was filed on behalf of a 12-year-old injured in the shooting, accusing OpenAI of failing to act on its knowledge of Van Rootselaar’s violent planning. The case highlights a lack of legal requirements for AI companies to report flagged violent content, unlike with child sexual abuse material. Similar incidents occurred in Finland and the U.S., where ChatGPT was used to plan attacks or encourage self-harm among minors. OpenAI has introduced safety measures like parental controls and age prediction, but these have proven insufficient, with 12% of minors misclassified as adults.
Young girls exploited to carry drugs by county lines gangs using social media for recruitment
County lines exploitation has increasingly targeted young girls, with Georgina*, a 17-year-old, being coerced into drug transportation after being groomed online by an older man connected to criminal gangs. Grooming often begins with compliments, gifts, and social media contact before moving to encrypted apps, with perpetrators using psychological and sexual coercion to control victims. In 2026, charities reported a rise in the exploitation of girls, who are less likely to be stopped or suspected of criminal activity. A Freedom of Information request revealed children as young as 13 had been arrested for drug dealing, and two girls were jailed for murder in a county lines-related attack in January 2026. Catch 22 reported that 22% of their county lines rescue service clients in 2025 were female, and the charity noted a lack of National Referral Mechanisms for girls, despite many being victims of criminal exploitation. In response, Essex Police launched the Under The Radar project to support girls aged 11–24 at risk of exploitation.
Snapchat Biometric Privacy Lawsuit in Illinois
A class action lawsuit alleges that Snapchat violated Illinois users' privacy by collecting biometric information without their consent. The lawsuit claims Snapchat's actions breached privacy and surveillance laws. The case is being reported by ClassAction.org.
Man convicted of grooming teenage girl via Snapchat, judge condemns conduct as reprehensible
A man who groomed a teenage girl on Snapchat in Australia may be deported for his actions. He exchanged nude messages with the underage teen he met online. Authorities described his conduct as "reprehensible." The case highlights concerns around child safety on social media platforms. The man is facing legal consequences, including potential deportation. The incident occurred in Australia, though the exact timeline is not specified in the article.
17-year-old Missouri girl dies by suicide after Snapchat and TikTok addiction beginning at age 10 leads to severe depression and self-harm
A wrongful death case filed in the Social Media Adolescent Addiction MDL alleges that a 17-year-old girl from Missouri became addicted to Snapchat and TikTok starting around age 10 or 11. The lawsuit claims the addiction led to severe mental depression, escalating to self-harm and ultimately to her death by suicide. The case is part of the broader MDL consolidating thousands of personal injury and wrongful death claims against Meta, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube over algorithmic design features alleged to foster addiction in minors.
Woman whose son died from drugs bought on social media celebrates verdicts against Meta ...
A Colorado woman, Kimberly Osterman, celebrated recent verdicts against Meta and YouTube, which were found liable for harms to children due to platform design. Her son, Max Osterman, died in 2021 at age 18 after purchasing a fentanyl-laced pill through Snapchat. In Los Angeles, a jury ruled that Meta and YouTube designed their platforms to hook young users, and in New Mexico, Meta was found to have knowingly harmed children’s mental health and concealed information about child sexual exploitation. Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, and TikTok settled before the Los Angeles trial began. Osterman is part of Parents for Safe Online Spaces, advocating for the Kids Online Safety Act, which would require social media platforms to take steps to prevent harm to minors. The drug dealer who sold Max the pill was sentenced to six years in prison in 2023.
Stalkerware app targets victims globally, exposing locations and messages without consent
Cybersecurity researchers from Kaspersky identified a new stalkerware app called MonitorMinor that enables covert surveillance of users' devices, including access to messages, location, and social media. The app bypasses standard security controls by gaining root access, allowing abusers to monitor victims without their knowledge. MonitorMinor can also extract sensitive files to unlock devices and erase its own digital traces, making it extremely difficult for victims to detect. The app is not available on major app stores like Google Play or the Apple Store, suggesting it does not meet standard privacy requirements. It has been most frequently installed in India and Mexico, with significant global reach. The Coalition Against Stalkerware, including NortonLifeLock, has raised concerns about the app's potential for abuse despite MonitorMinor's claims it is intended solely for parental monitoring.
Liverpool pastor convicted of grooming and sexually abusing multiple girls via online platforms
An evangelical pastor, Walter Chahwanda, was jailed for nine years after being found guilty of 17 sexual offences against girls aged 14 to 17 between 2017 and 2020. The offences included sending indecent electronic images, sexual activity with children, and causing children to watch sexual acts. Chahwanda, who was based in Chester and later ran a church in Speke, Merseyside, groomed victims on TikTok and Snapchat, targeting girls as far afield as Manchester, South Yorkshire, the East Midlands, and Kent. He admitted to having sexualised conversations on social media but dismissed them as "naughty" role play. The court heard that the church was aware of complaints but failed to safeguard young girls. Chahwanda was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court in 2023.
KGM sues Meta and Google over Instagram and YouTube addiction beginning at age 6, leading to depression and suicidal thoughts — first bellwether trial
A woman identified as KGM (Kaley G.M.) filed one of the first bellwether cases in the Social Media Adolescent Addiction MDL, alleging that Instagram and YouTube addiction beginning when she was approximately 6 years old led to clinical depression and suicidal thoughts. The lawsuit names Meta, Google, TikTok, and Snapchat, with Snap settling before trial. In January and February 2026, KGM's case became the first social media addiction case to proceed to jury trial in Los Angeles, with her mother Karen Glenn also testifying. Expert witnesses including Stanford psychiatry professor Anna Lembke testified that social media addiction is real and can cause or worsen anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. The trial's outcome is expected to influence over 1,000 similar lawsuits.