Netflix fires back at Texas over lawsuit accusing it of spying on kids

Netflix is firing back at Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's new lawsuit accusing the company of spying on children, "meritless" and founded on "distorted information."

In a statement to USA TODAY, the streaming platform responded after Paxton filed suit on Monday, May 11, alleging that Netflix illegally tracks and logs user data — including on kids' profiles — and sells it to build consumer profiles.

"Respectfully to the great state of Texas and Attorney General Paxton, this lawsuit lacks merit and is based on inaccurate and distorted information. Netflix takes our members’ privacy seriously and complies with privacy and data‑protection laws everywhere we operate," read the statement.

The lawsuit, filed in a Collin County district court, alleges the following points:

• Netflix tracks and logs users’ viewing habits, preferences, devices, household networks, application usage, and other sensitive behavioral data on both adult and kids' accounts.
• Netflix then uses this data to build detailed consumer profiles and sells them to other companies, profiting from the sales.
• Netflix also designs its platform to be addictive, including features like autoplay. 

Netflix is signaling that it intends to fight the case in court.

"We look forward to addressing the Texas Attorney General’s allegations in court and further explaining our industry-leading, kid‑friendly parental controls and transparent privacy practices,” Netflix's statement concluded.

Mateo Rosiles is the Texas Connect reporter for USA TODAY and its regional papers in Texas. Got a news tip for him? Email him: [email protected].