Law & Justice
Brazil sues Discord over child safety, seeks $97m
Brazil's government has sued Discord, seeking to force the messaging platform to strengthen child safety measures and pay R$500 million, or $97 million, in compensation for collective moral damages.
The government said Wednesday that the lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Brasilia after negotiations with Discord failed. It said Discord's proposals were not enough to eliminate identified risks and that the case seeks protection for children, adolescents and women online.
Brazil's National Data Protection Agency, known as ANPD, ordered Discord earlier this month to suspend livestreams after a 13-year-old girl was encouraged to kill herself during a livestream. Discord agreed to suspend livestreaming in Brazil on August 17 and said it was working “to make Discord safer for teens.”
The government said Discord still had flaws in age verification and user protection mechanisms, exposing users to serious risks, including risks it linked to the girl's death in July. Brazil is demanding stricter parental controls, closer cooperation with authorities and systems able to detect and prevent situations that put minors at risk.
Five teenagers and an adult have been arrested in connection with the girl's death in a small town in central-western Brazil. An official with the Justice Ministry's Ciberlab intelligence unit said teenagers allegedly encouraged the girl to kill an animal and, when she failed, encouraged her to kill herself. One of the teenagers arrested was 14.
Discord, which has more than 90 million active daily users, has said it is working to make the platform safer for teenagers. Co-founder Stanislav Vishnevskiy made that assurance in a blog post earlier this month.
Brazil has been tightening rules for social media platforms, including requiring users under 16 to link their accounts to those of their parents. On Tuesday, ANPD fined TikTok nearly $30 million for failing to implement child safety measures. ANPD director Lorena Giuberti Coutinho said the agency had also opened proceedings to check whether 22 social media networks and platforms comply with a child online protection law passed this year.
Update
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Brasilia.
Brazil is demanding stricter parental controls, closer cooperation with authorities and systems to detect and prevent situations that put minors at risk.
Discord is described as having more than 90 million active daily users.
Discord co-founder Stanislav Vishnevskiy said in a blog post that the company was working to make Discord safer for teens.
Source note: AFP news report published on 26 August 2026 at 22:15:14 UTC.
Update
Brazil said the lawsuit followed failed negotiations with Discord, whose proposals were deemed insufficient.
The lawsuit seeks R$500 million, or $97 million, in collective moral damages.
Discord agreed to suspend livestreaming in Brazil on August 17 and said it was working to make Discord safer for teens.
Five teenagers and an adult have been arrested in connection with the 13-year-old girl's death.
Brazil's data protection agency has begun proceedings to check 22 social media networks and platforms for compliance with a child online protection law.
Source note: AFP news report published on 26 August 2026 at 21:21:43 UTC.
Update
Brazil's government said the lawsuit seeks to force Discord to adopt stronger child-protection measures.
The government said it is seeking almost $100 million in collective moral damages.
The government alleged Discord continues to have flaws in age verification and user-protection mechanisms.
The government said those flaws expose users to serious risks, including risks it linked to the death of a 13-year-old girl in July.
Source note: AFP news report published on 26 August 2026 at 20:50:12 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The lawsuit's allegations against Discord have not been resolved in court.
The criminal responsibility of those arrested in connection with the girl's death is not established in the supplied information.
Source
AFP news report published on .