A 24 year old man from Montreal, Canada, is launching a class-action lawsuit against social media companies like TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, Instagram, and Facebook for being “too addictive.”
The man started using social media in 2015, due to which, he claimed that his productivity was negatively affected, according to a CTV report, which added that he also developed negative views when it came to body image.
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A Dexerto report quoted the Montreal-based law firm Lambert Avocats behind the case as saying that social media sites like Facebook, TikTok, Instagram and YouTube are designed in such a way so as to to increase dopamine secretion and get users addicted.
The lawsuit says that social media companies were negligent when it came to designing apps, since the apps are built more to make users become dependent on them.
The 24 year old man behind the case has since, limited his social media use cycle to just two hours a day, but the apps continued to affect his sleep and productivity, the report quoted a Lambert employee named Philippe Brault as saying.
“In 2024, it’s estimated that humanity as a whole will be using social media for a total of 500 million years,” Brault was quoted as saying. “That just goes to show that it’s not a problem for a certain number of individuals, it’s a widespread problem for everyone.”
In Canada, around 52% of kids aged between seven to 11 use social media and their health and safety needs to be a top priority for social media companies, according to the report.
Lambert is seeking compensatory and punitive damages for its client, but whether the lawsuit will get of the ground is not clear since a judge has to authorise it.
In a similar case, four school boards in Ontario, Canada are suing TikTok, Meta, and Snapchat and claim they “disrupt the education system.” The schools are seeking $4.5B in damages.