Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton launched an investigation into messaging platform Discord after the suspect in conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s assassination used it, Paxton announced in an Oct. 9 news release.
Paxton will examine Discord’s role in showing “extremist” content to minors and the “addictiveness of the platform for minors.” This is all part of an overarching data privacy and security initiative launched in 2024, which focuses on ensuring companies follow Texas privacy protection laws, according to a 2024 news release.
The investigation is being conducted in accordance with the Securing Children Online through Parental Empowerment Act, according to the Oct. 9 news release which requires digital service companies to follow child safety rules such as creating parental controls and limiting the sharing or selling of minors’ information.
“Discord has chosen to allow extremist content, sexual exploitation and addiction to flourish on its platform,” Paxton said. “It has a legal obligation to prevent minors from being exposed to these evils, but instead its actions have contributed to the growing wave of nihilistic violence all across our nation.”
Tyler Robinson, the suspect in Kirk’s assassination, appeared to confess to the crime in a Discord group server, according to BBC. In an attempt to make the platform safer for children, Paxton issued a civil investigative demand, an official request for information in a non-criminal case, asking Discord to hand over certain content related to extremism, sexual exploitation of minors and rises in violence, according to the October news release.
Discord does not comment on legal matters, but it said in an email minor privacy and safety are a priority for the organization.
“Discord is deeply committed to safety,” a Discord spokesperson said in an email. “We use a combination of advanced technology and trained safety teams to proactively find and remove content that violates our policies.”
Discord is a messaging platform commonly used as an alternative to traditional online communication like calling or texting. Many student organizations across the University use Discord to contact members and distribute information.
Biology senior Grace Lee, vice president of the spirit organization Texas Lassos, is in charge of the approximately 160-person Discord server they use to communicate. She said Discord is “a really important part of Lassos,” and the organization implements specific measures, like trigger warnings, to keep members safe.
“I will see every single message that comes through, and if someone says something that may be considered offensive or not sensitive to other people, I immediately will delete it,” Lee said.
Paxton previously investigated other social platform companies last year, including Discord and Instagram, and he filed a lawsuit against TikTok concerning online safety for minors.
“Technology companies are on notice that my office is vigorously enforcing Texas’s strong data privacy laws,” Paxton said in a December 2024 news release. “These investigations are a critical step toward ensuring that social media and AI companies comply with our laws designed to protect children from exploitation and harm.”