Several families have reported TikTok in France as causing suicide and mental problems among young people

16 families will formalize a collective complaint against TikTok on Monday before the Paris Public Prosecutor's Office for being responsible for the suicides or behavioural disorders of their teenage children.

Attorney Laure Boutron-Marmion, who runs the proceedings on behalf of families, explained in an interview with France Info that they argue that the social network abused vulnerability because minors are vulnerable and the social network exploits that vulnerability .

The complaint includes the case of the family of five girls who committed suicide, ten girls and one boy with anorexia, depression or suicidal tendencies.

Christell, the mother of one of the teenagers affected by anorexia, who is also a teacher, acknowledged that the facts had "overtaken" her and that she had not been aware of the "morbid images" and other contents her daughter saw.

For this professor, TikTok "deliberately leads our teenagers to perform actions that are harmful to themselves."

The mother is convinced that the social network increases the fragility of her daughter, who is now 15 years old: "There is cruelty in getting her attention and taking advantage of it. They obviously abuse her weakness."

The Paris Public Prosecutor's Office opened an investigation into TikToki in October 2025 to determine whether, with some of the content published there, the platform promotes suicide among young people.

Beyond the pre-judicial procedure, Boutron-Marmon stressed, ultimately what they want is for politicians to push through a law prohibiting teenagers from social media. 

In this respect, the French Parliament is in the process of adopting a bill to ban the use of social networks for children under 15 years of age and is awaiting the approval of European bodies.