FTC Claims COPPA Violations in Lawsuit Against Kids’ Messaging App
Sendit violated COPPA by illegally collecting children’s data and deceived users with messages from fake people, the FTC announced Tuesday in a lawsuit against the Los Angeles-based anonymous messaging app.
The FTC sued Sendit operator Iconic Hearts Holdings and CEO Hunter Rice, alleging they knew users were under 13 and failed to notify parents. COPPA requires companies with knowledge that they are collecting data from children under 13 to notify parents and obtain parental consent before collecting data.
The company collected data from children -- including phone numbers, birthdates, photos and usernames for Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok -- without notifying parents and without obtaining verifiable consent, the agency alleged. The FTC noted that in 2022, more than 116,000 users reported they were under the age of 13.
The FTC voted 3-0 to approve the complaint, which DOJ filed with the U.S. District Court for Central California (docket 2:25-cv-09310). The company didn’t comment Tuesday.
“Sendit’s operator and CEO were well aware that many of its users were under the age of 13 and still failed to comply with COPPA,” said Consumer Protection Bureau Director Christopher Mufarrige.
Rice “formulated, directed, controlled, had the authority to control, or participated in the acts and practices of Iconic Hearts described” in the complaint, the agency said in its filing.
The filing claims the FTC informed the company in July 2023 of the investigation -- including potential violations of COPPA and Section 5 of the FTC Act -- and the illegal conduct continued. The complaint notes the FTC is seeking as much as $53,000 for each COPPA violation assessed after Jan. 17. The filing also includes claims under the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act, which prohibits unfair or deceptive internet sales with a negative option feature.
The lawsuit claims the company tricked users “into purchasing paid subscriptions by falsely promising to reveal the senders of anonymous messages.”
The agency also alleged the company profited from deceiving young users into paying for auto-renewal subscriptions to find out who was sending them anonymous and often provocative messages. The FTC’s examples of messages included “have you done drugs” or “would you ever get with me?”
The company “manipulated many users, including children, into signing up for their weekly subscription service by sending fake messages and promising to reveal the identity of message senders but failing to deliver,” said Mufarrige.