TEXAS — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Thursday took legal action against TikTok, claiming that the platform violates the Securing Children Online through Parental Empowerment (SCOPE) Act by sharing personal data of minors.

The data that the lawsuit alleges is shared includes “date of birth, email, phone number, and device settings, such as device type, language preference, and country setting, as well as data about a user’s interaction with TikTok, such as videos viewed, “liked” or shared, accounts followed, comments, content created, video captions, sounds, and hashtags.”

Effective from Sept. 1, the SCOPE Act is newly enacted legislation. The act mandates that digital service providers safeguard minors from harmful content and data collection practices.

TikTok is accused in the lawsuit of violating the SCOPE Act by failing to provide parents and guardians with the required tools to protect minors’ privacy and safety, and by not developing a reliable method for verifying a parent’s identity and relationship to a minor.

TikTok has set limitations for young users, disallowing those under 16 from sending/receiving direct messages and those under 18 from live streaming. However, Paxton states that the platform still doesn’t adhere to the SCOPE Act.

The lawsuit seeks an injunction and civil penalties of up to $10,000 for each violation. Three counts of violations have been identified in the suit.