FTC Issues Ban on Offering Anonymous Messaging App to Children Under Age 18

On July 9, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission issued a proposed order that would ban NGL Labs, LLC, and two of its co-founders from offering an anonymous messaging app called “NGL: ask me anything” (“NGL App”) to children under the age of 18. The Commission voted 5-0 to authorize the staff to file the complaint and proposed order in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Launched in 2021, the NGL App allows users to post a link to their social media page, inviting followers to click the link to send messages back to the users anonymously. The link leads to the NGL App, where followers can answer…