In a surprising turn of events, Social media giant TikTok finds itself in the midst of a civil lawsuit initiated by Singapore Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam.
The minister said in his affidavits that TikTok failed to assist him in identifying three users responsible for uploading videos containing allegations about him having an extra-marital affair, which he has refuted as being “false and baseless”, according to TODAY.
False Allegations and Legal Action
On August 13, a TikTok user with the handle “@trusted.selller” uploaded a video containing defamatory content against Minister K Shanmugam, setting the legal proceedings in motion.
Two days later, another user, “@tharakhussin,” allegedly shared a video with false and defamatory statements, linking the minister to an extramarital affair with Member of Parliament Foo Mee Har.
On August 17, a third user, “@thaddeusthomas81,” posted a video supposedly clarifying the allegations, deepening the legal quagmire for Minister Shanmugam.
TikTok’s Refusal to Cooperate
TikTok, in response to the minister’s request for user information, refused to disclose details without a court order, leading to the filing of affidavits in court.
Minister Shanmugam, in efforts to counter the false allegations, took to his Facebook account to disclaim any involvement in the alleged affairs and to assert that the accusations were fabricated.
Following the upload of defamatory content, separate legal proceedings were initiated against celebscritic.com, the platform that published the article containing false statements.
Despite Minister Shanmugam’s legal representatives urging TikTok to take action, the social media giant maintained its stance, citing an inability to disclose information without a court order or legal requirement.
Minister Shanmugam contends that the three users breached TikTok’s guidelines by uploading content designed to harass, harm, or distress individuals.
A. Request for Documents and Information
The minister’s affidavits emphasize the necessity of obtaining documents and information from TikTok to identify the users involved, justifying the court’s intervention.
Minister Shanmugam argues that requiring TikTok to produce user information is proportionate to the severity of the false allegations and the users’ breach of TikTok’s guidelines.