CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — West Virginia is suing Snap, the company behind Snapchat, alleging it misled families about child safety and failed to protect young users from sexual exploitation.The lawsuit came just one day before the first anniversary of Bryce Tate’s death. The teenager was the target of sextortion via Snapchat.”They have deceived West Virginia parents and children about the safety of Snapchat while exposing kids to sexual exploitation,” West Virginia Attorney General JB McCuskey said.The lawsuit said Bryce was 15 when a predator posing as a teenage girl contacted him on Snapchat last November. After he sent intimate photos, the person demanded $500 and threatened to share them.Adam Tate, Bryce’s father, said the predator sent about 120 messages in 20 minutes. Bryce died by suicide that night.The state also cites the 2018 death of 12-year-old Cimarron Thomas, who was contacted on Snapchat by an online predator.Tate joined McCuskey to announce the Shield Initiative, a three-pronged education and prevention program to help students recognize and respond to sextortion and online exploitation:Stop. Don’t comply and don’t panic.Screenshot. Preserve the evidence.Show someone. Tell a trusted adult immediately.“When kids know that they have somebody that they can turn to in a moment of panic, then we know we can save kids,” McCuskey said.”The state is seeking civil penalties and court-ordered safety changes. The claims in the lawsuit have not been proven in court.The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said it received more than 50,000 reports of financial sextortion in 2025.Those numbers translate to about 137 per day and at least three dozen teenage boys died by suicide after being targeted.”Have this conversation with your kids, prior to them being targeted,” Tate advised. “Let them know if they make a simple mistake, it’s still safe we to go to them. It’s not the time to ridicule them or punish them.”
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