Snapchat Sued Over Allegations Of Preying On Teens, Facilitating Criminal Behavior

Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox, alongside the state’s Attorney General Derek Brown and Margaret Busse of the state’s Commerce Department, launched a legal action today aimed at halting what they describe as Snap Inc.’s (SNAP) manipulative design tactics targeting youth on its Snapchat platform.

The Utah Division of Consumer Protection and the Attorney General’s Office submitted a joint lawsuit in state court on Monday, alleging that Snap benefits financially from harmful design choices and facilitates criminal behavior such as sextortion and drug trafficking. 

Following the news, Snap stock inched 0.3% lower in afternoon trading on Monday.

Utah’s legal filing argues that features like disappearing messages, streak tracking, visual filters, targeted notifications, and location sharing through the Snap Map are deliberately crafted to take advantage of young users’ mental and emotional susceptibility. 

The state accused the company of deploying manipulative strategies, likening them to “digital nicotine,” in a bid to increase usage while compromising adolescents’ well-being.

The lawsuit charged Snap with falsely presenting Snapchat as a safe environment featuring “age-appropriate content,” even as internal audits allegedly revealed sexually explicit material directed at teens. 

Additionally, the state asserted that Snap violated the Utah Consumer Privacy Act by secretly collecting sensitive data, including biometric and geolocation information, without providing users or their guardians with an opportunity to opt out.

“Utah is taking a stand to protect our kids in an increasingly digital world. This lawsuit against Snap is about accountability and about drawing a clear line: the well-being of our children must come before corporate profits,” said Governor Cox.

The state’s legal filing also criticizes Snapchat’s AI assistant, My AI, citing inadequate safety evaluations and the use of manipulative interface tactics known as “dark patterns.” 

The chatbot, which is enabled by default and appears before real contacts in the app, reportedly tracks location data despite “Ghost Mode” being active and has allegedly provided minors with unsafe guidance, including tips on concealing alcohol or drugs.

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward Snap shifted to ‘neutral’ from ‘bullish’ territory the previous day, accompanied by ‘high’ levels of message volume.

Snap stock has lost over 19% in 2025 and nearly 46% in the last 12 months.

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