Latest news with #IsaacKenevan
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Yahoo
Data of four dead British teens may have been removed, says TikTok
A TikTok executive has said data being sought by a group of parents who believe their children died while attempting a trend they saw on the platform may have been removed. They are suing TikTok and its parent company Bytedance over the deaths of Isaac Kenevan, Archie Battersbee, Julian "Jools" Sweeney and Maia Walsh - all aged between 12 and 14. The lawsuit claims the children died trying the "blackout challenge", in which a person intentionally deprives themselves of oxygen. Giles Derrington, senior government relations manager at TikTok, told BBC Radio 5 Live: "We always want to do everything we can to give anyone answers on these kinds of issues but there are some things which we simply don't have." Speaking on Safer Internet Day, a global initiative to raise awareness about online harms, Mr Derrington said TikTok had been in contact with some of the parents, adding that they "have been through something unfathomably tragic". In an interview on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, the families accused the tech firm of having "no compassion". Ellen Roome, mother of 14-year-old Jools, said she had been trying to obtain data from TikTok that she thinks could provide clarity on his death. She is campaigning for legislation to grant parents access to their child's social media accounts if they die. "We want TikTok to be forthcoming, to help us - why hold back on giving us the data?" Lisa Kenevan, mother of 13-year-old Isaac, told the programme. "How can they sleep at night?" Asked why TikTok had not given the data the parents had been asking for, Mr Derrington said: "This is really complicated stuff because it relates to the legal requirements around when we remove data and we have, under data protection laws, requirements to remove data quite quickly. That impacts on what we can do. "We always want to do everything we can to give anyone answers on these kinds of issues but there are some things which simply we don't have," he added. Asked if this meant TikTok no longer had a record of the children's accounts or the content of their accounts, Mr Derrington said: "These are complex situations where requirements to remove data can impact on what is available. "Everyone expects that when we are required by law to delete some data, we will have deleted it. "So this is a more complicated situation than us just having something we're not giving access to. "Obviously it's really important that case plays out as it should and that people get as many answers as are available." The lawsuit - which is being brought on behalf of the parents in the US by the Social Media Victims Law Center - alleges TikTok broke its own rules on what can be shown on the platform. It claims their children died participating in a trend that circulated widely on TikTok in 2022, despite the site having rules around not showing or promoting dangerous content that could cause significant physical harm. While Mr Derrington would not comment on the specifics of the ongoing case, he said of the parents: "I have young kids myself and I can only imagine how much they want to get answers and want to understand what's happened. "We've had conversations with some of those parents already to try and help them in that." He said the so-called "blackout challenge" predated TikTok, adding: "We have never found any evidence that the blackout challenge has been trending on the platform. "Indeed since 2020 [we] have completely banned even being able to search for the words 'blackout challenge' or variants of it, to try and make sure that no-one is coming across that kind of content. "We don't want anything like that on the platform and we know users don't want it either." Mr Derrington noted TikTok has committed more than $2bn (£1.6bn) on moderating content uploaded to the platform this year, and has tens of thousands of human moderators around the world. He also said the firm has launched an online safety hub, which provides information on how to stay safe as a user, which he said also facilitated conversations between parents and their teens. Mr Derrington continued: "This is a really, really tragic situation but we are trying to make sure that we are constantly doing everything we can to make sure that people are safe on TikTok." If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this story, support and advice is available via BBC Action Line Archie Battersbee died in prank gone wrong - coroner Bereaved mum's social media battle to be debated by MPs Dad wants to see daughter's Tiktok after death TikTok sued by parents of UK teens after alleged challenge deaths
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Yahoo
Data of dead British children may have been deleted, TikTok boss says
Data from the TikTok accounts of four British children who their parents believe died after attempting a challenge on the platform may have been deleted, an executive from the firm said. The families of Isaac Kenevan, Archie Battersbee, Julian 'Jools' Sweeney and Maia Walsh – all aged 12 to 14 – have sued TikTok and its parent firm ByteDance in the US in an effort to force the firm to release their children's data. The wrongful death lawsuit claims the four died attempting a so-called 'blackout challenge', and said they want access to their children's account data to 'get answers' about how they died. But Giles Dennington, senior government relations manager at TikTok, told BBC Radio 5 Live 'there are some things we simply don't have'. After the lawsuit against TikTok was filed last week, Ellen Roome, mother of 14-year-old Jools, told the PA news agency that she had been trying to obtain her son's data from TikTok as she 'just wants answers' about his death and the data was 'the only piece that we haven't looked at'. Ms Roome said she had been 'shocked' to learn that she 'wasn't entitled' to Jools' data, and was told by TikTok that a court order was required to release it. She is now campaigning for legislation to grant parents access to their children's social media accounts if they die. She told PA that it had been 'horrendously difficult' to 'not understand why' her son had died. Asked why parents in these cases had not been able to access data, Mr Dennington said: 'This is really complicated stuff because it relates to the legal requirements around when we remove data and we have, under data protection laws, requirements to remove data quite quickly. That impacts on what we can do.' He added that data protection requirements to remove data 'can impact on what is available' and that 'everyone expects that when we are required by law to delete some data, we will have deleted it'. He said: 'So this is a more complicated situation than us just having something we're not giving access to. 'Obviously it's really important that case plays out as it should and that people get as many answers as are available.' He said the social media firm has 'had conversations with some of those parents already to try and help them in that'. The lawsuit filed on behalf of the parents accuses TikTok of pushing dangerous prank and challenge videos to children to boost engagement time on the platform. According to TikTok, it does not allow content showing or promoting dangerous activity or challenges, and it proactively finds 99% of content which is removed for breaking these rules before it is reported to the firm. Mr Dennington said the so-called 'blackout challenge' pre-dated TikTok and the firm has 'never found any evidence that the blackout challenge has been trending on the platform'. 'Indeed since 2020 (we) have completely banned even being able to search for the words 'blackout challenge' or variants of it, to try and make sure that no-one is coming across that kind of content,' he said. 'We don't want anything like that on the platform and we know users don't want it either.' He added: 'This is a really, really tragic situation but we are trying to make sure that we are constantly doing everything we can to make sure that people are safe on TikTok.'
BBC News
11-02-2025
- BBC News
TikTok says data of four dead British teens may have been erased
A TikTok executive has said that data being sought by a group of parents who believe their children died while attempting a trend they saw on the platform may have been are suing TikTok and its parent company Bytedance over the deaths of Isaac Kenevan, Archie Battersbee, Julian "Jools" Sweeney and Maia Walsh - all aged between 12 and lawsuit claims the children died trying the "blackout challenge", in which a person intentionally deprives themselves of Dennington, senior government relations manager at TikTok, told BBC Radio 5 Live: "We always want to do everything we can to give anyone answers on these kinds of issues but there are some things which we simply don't have." Speaking on Safer Internet Day, a global initiative to raise awareness about online harms, Mr Dennington said TikTok had been in contact with some of the parents, adding that they "have been through something unfathomably tragic".In an interview on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, the families accused the tech firm of having "no compassion".Ellen Roome, mother of 14-year-old Jools, said she had been trying to obtain data from TikTok that she thinks could provide clarity on his death. She is campaigning for legislation to grant parents access to their child's social media accounts if they die."We want TikTok to be forthcoming, to help us - why hold back on giving us the data?" Lisa Kenevan, mother of 13-year-old Isaac, told the programme. "How can they sleep at night?"Asked why they had not been able to access that data, Mr Dennington said: "This is really complicated stuff because it relates to the legal requirements around when we remove data and we have, under data protection laws, requirements to remove data quite quickly. That impacts on what we can do."Data protection requirements to remove data "can impact on what is available", he said, adding: "Everyone expects that when we are required by law to delete some data, we will have deleted it."So this is a more complicated situation than us just having something we're not giving access to. "Obviously it's really important that case plays out as it should and that people get as many answers as are available."The lawsuit - which is being brought on behalf of the parents in the US by the Social Media Victims Law Center - alleges TikTok broke its own rules on what can be shown on the platform. It claims that their children died participating in a trend that circulated widely on TikTok in 2022, despite the site having rules around not showing or promoting dangerous content that could cause significant physical Mr Dennington would not comment on the specifics of the ongoing case, he said of the parents: "I have young kids myself and I can only imagine how much they want to get answers and want to understand what's happened."We've had conversations with some of those parents already to try and help them in that."He said the so-called "blackout challenge" predated TikTok, adding: "We have never found any evidence that the blackout challenge has been trending on the platform. "Indeed since 2020 [we] have completely banned even being able to search for the words 'blackout challenge' or variants of it, to try and make sure that no-one is coming across that kind of content."We don't want anything like that on the platform and we know users don't want it either."Mr Dennison noted that TikTok has committed more than $2bn (£1.6bn) on moderating content uploaded to the platform this year, and has tens of thousands of human moderators around the also said the firm has launched an online safety hub, which provides information on how to stay safe as a user, which he said also facilitated conversations between parents and their Dennison continued: "This is a really, really tragic situation but we are trying to make sure that we are constantly doing everything we can to make sure that people are safe on TikTok." If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this story, support and advice is available via BBC Action Line
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Yahoo
British families sue TikTok in U.S. over Blackout Challenge children deaths
Feb. 7 (UPI) -- Four British families Thursday filed a wrongful death suit against TikTok and its owner ByteDance over the self-strangulation deaths of four children who were participating in a TikTok Blackout Challenge. The U.S.-based Social Media Victims Law Center filed the suit in Delaware Superior Court. on behalf of the families of Isaac Kenevan, 13; Archie Battersbee, 12; Julian "Jools" Sweeney,14; and Maia Walsh, 13. "TikTok's algorithm purposely targeted these children with dangerous content to increase their engagement time on the platform and drive revenue. It was a clear and deliberate business decision by TikTok that cost these four children their lives," the SMVLC said in a statement. The suit alleges the deaths were "the forseeable result of ByteDance's engineered addiction-by-design and programming decisions" that pushed children to maximize their TikTok engagement "by any means necessary." Sweeney's mother Ellen Roome told the BBC a law debated in Parliament dubbed "Jools' Law" should be passed so parents are allowed to access their children's social media accounts if they die. She had to sue in the United States before obtaining her son's TikTok data. She said she believed that was morally wrong and TikTok could have simply handed over the data. "It's no coincidence that three of the four children who died from self-suffocation after being exposed to the dangerous and deadly TikTok Blackout Challenge lived in the same city and that all fit a similar demographic," SMVLC attorney Matthew P. Bergman said in a statement. He added that TikTok's algorithm "purposely targeted these children with dangerous content to increase their engagement time on the platform and drive revenue." According to the lawsuit, Maia Walsh's father Liam was able to access her TikTok data after months of trying and said he found TikTok had targeted the 13 year-old with "dangerous challenges and self-harm videos."
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Yahoo
British families sue TikTok over ‘blackout challenge' child deaths
TikTok is being sued by the families of four British children who died during a 'blackout challenge' craze that went viral on social media in 2022. The families of Archie Battersbee, Isaac Kenevan, Julian 'Jools' Sweeney and Maia Walsh have taken legal action against the technology giant, which is owned by China's Bytedance, in a wrongful death lawsuit filed in the US. It is believed to be the first time British parents have sued TikTok in this manner. The children, aged between 12 and 14, all died after passing out. They are believed to have suffered fatal injuries while copying a so-called 'blackout challenge'. Matthew Bergman, a lawyer at the Social Media Victims Law Center, which is representing the families, said: 'TikTok's algorithm purposely targeted these children with dangerous content to increase their engagement time on the platform and drive revenue.' Lawyers for the families claimed TikTok was a 'dangerous and addictive product that markets itself as fun and safe for children, while lulling parents into a false sense of security'. TikTok has banned blackout challenge videos since 2020 and blocks searches or hashtags related to the videos. It also bars other dangerous pranks from its app. The company declined to comment. Archie, 12, from Essex, died in 2022 after he was found non-responsive by his mother on April 7. He was taken off life support in August that year after a legal battle by his mother to keep him alive. She did not know he was using TikTok at the time of the incident. She believes he had attempted the blackout challenge, although a coroner did not find any evidence he was copying something he had seen online. His death was ruled a 'prank or experiment' gone wrong. Isaac, 13, died in March 2022 at his home in Essex. Lawyers for the family said his parents had believed the app was 'a fun, silly, and safe platform designed for kids and young people'. They later found videos on his phone in which he attempted to pass out. Julian Sweeney, 14, from Cheltenham, died on April 13, 2022. Her family has campaigned for access to her child's data in what has been dubbed 'Jools' Law'. Maia, 13, also from Essex, started using social media under her father's supervision, but lawyers for the family say she 'quickly became hooked on TikTok and began having trouble sleeping'. A police investigation into her death in October 2022 is ongoing. Her father says she was targeted with dangerous challenge and self-harm videos in the days leading to her death. The lawsuit, filed in Delaware, alleges the deaths of the children were the 'foreseeable result of ByteDance's engineered addiction-by-design and programming decisions'. It alleges they were bombarded with an 'endless stream of harms'. It said these were 'not harms the children searched for or wanted to see when their use of TikTok began'. The legal claim is thought to be the first time British families have sued TikTok through the US courts over the death of a child. TikTok, Meta, Snapchat and other social media companies have been hit by hundreds of legal claims by US families and schools, alleging their products are defective and cause harm to children. The companies are fighting the cases. TikTok narrowly avoided being blocked in the US in January, after President Donald Trump granted it a reprieve on a law that would have barred the app from US smartphone stores over national security concerns due to its China links. The company has always denied posing a security risk. In 2021, TikTok strengthened its rules around online challenges to automatically detect and block more potentially dangerous content. In its online rules, TikTok says: 'The majority [of challenges] are fun and safe, but some promote harmful behaviours including the risk of serious injury. Our Community Guidelines prohibit dangerous challenges.' While most online 'challenge' videos which go viral on social media are mundane or silly, a study commissioned by TikTok found around one in 50 teenagers had taken part in a 'dangerous' online challenge and around one in 300 had taken part in a 'really dangerous' challenge. There have also previously been hoax challenges, which have been picked up by the media and seen false claims spread online. Sign in to access your portfolio
