What to Do If Your Child Is Posted on the Tea App: Legal Rights and Next Steps

Parents across the country are reporting a troubling pattern: photos and stories of minors appearing on the Tea App, a social platform originally designed for adult women to share dating experiences and warn others about unsafe encounters.

While the app’s intent was empowerment, its execution raises serious concerns. Tea allows users to post names, images, and commentary about real people, often with minimal moderation or verification. Increasingly, that includes references to or photos of minors. Sometimes it’s indirect (as relatives, acquaintances, or misidentified individuals), and sometimes it’s direct.

If your child has been mentioned or pictured on the Tea App, you are likely experiencing a mix of emotions: violation, anger, confusion, and helplessness. You might be wondering who posted about your child, what exactly they said, whether it can be removed, and what legal recourse exists. The anonymous nature of the platform can make you feel powerless, but you have more options than you may realize.

At Minc Law, we focus exclusively on online defamation and digital reputation cases. We have helped thousands of clients across the country fight back against harmful posts on social media platforms, and we have seen firsthand how apps like Tea can affect families. This article outlines practical next steps, explains realistic legal options, and helps set clear expectations so you understand what can and cannot be done under current U.S. law.

Understanding the Tea App and Why It’s a Problem for Minors

Tea is marketed as a “community for women” to discuss dating experiences, red flags, and reputations. But its design creates fertile ground for misuse: anonymity, gossip-style posts, and light moderation all contribute to the problem.

Even Tea’s own onboarding screen acknowledges these risks. Users must agree to “house rules” stating that everything they say must be true, that they won’t post last names or personal data, that bullying or harassment is not allowed, and, crucially, that they will not post women or men under 18.

On paper, those rules demonstrate awareness of potential harm. In practice, however, self-policing systems depend entirely on user reports and enforcement consistency. Despite the stated ban, reports across social platforms confirm that minors’ names and images have surfaced on Tea. That enforcement gap exposes users (particularly minors) to harassment, reputational harm, and unwanted exposure.

The issue is compounded by Tea’s 2025 data breach, which exposed more than 72,000 images and identity documents submitted for verification. While the breach primarily affected adult users, it underscores a larger concern: sensitive data on gossip-driven apps is rarely secure.

Step One: Document Everything Immediately

Before taking any action, collect and preserve evidence. Once a post is deleted, proving what was said or who published it becomes extremely difficult.

You should capture screenshots of the post itself, along with any comments and the profile name or handle of the poster. Note the date, time, and visible URL if available. Pay particular attention to whether the post included identifying information such as your child’s name, school, city, or image. Write a brief note describing how you discovered the content and your child’s connection to it.

This evidence helps an attorney assess whether the post meets legal standards for defamation, privacy invasion, or another claim, and it can strengthen removal or takedown requests.

Step Two: Report the Content to Tea

Tea’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy prohibit harassment, defamation, and posting minors — but enforcement depends on users submitting formal takedown requests. The company’s own instructions specify:

For takedown requests, email accounthelp@teaforwomen.com
with:

• Your name
• City and state
• As much information as possible about the content in question
• A clear photo of yourself (to help them verify and locate the content)

The Tea App states that accounthelp@teaforwomen.com
is the only inbox that processes takedown requests. Emails sent elsewhere will not receive a response.

Be clear, factual, and polite in your request. Describe why the post should be removed (for example, it involves a minor or violates Tea’s community guidelines). Attach the screenshots you collected earlier.

Step Three: Talk to an Attorney to Understand Your Legal Options

If the company fails to act or unreasonably delays, parents may need to consult with an experienced attorney to discuss legal options for removal.

Parents often assume that posting a minor online is automatically illegal. Unfortunately, U.S. law is narrower than most people expect. Several potential legal avenues exist, though each depends heavily on the facts and the state where the issue occurs.

Copyright & DMCA Takedown Rights

If a post on the Tea App includes a photo or video of your child that you or your child originally created, you may be able to request its removal under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). Copyright law protects creators’ rights to control how their original content is used, and parents or legal guardians can assert those rights on behalf of a minor. Submitting a DMCA takedown notice can be an effective way to have unauthorized images or videos of your child removed, even when privacy or defamation laws do not directly apply. Keep in mind that this option only covers copyrighted media such as photos, videos, or recordings, not written posts, opinions, or factual descriptions about your child.

Privacy and Publicity Rights

If private or identifying facts about your child were shared without consent, especially alongside sensitive information, you might have a claim for invasion of privacy or public disclosure of private facts. Some states also recognize a right of publicity, which protects a person’s image or likeness from unauthorized commercial use. However, these claims require specific conditions: the content must reveal genuinely private details, not be newsworthy, and cause real harm or distress. Simply appearing in a public photo or being mentioned online may not qualify.

Defamation

If the post includes a false statement of fact that damages your child’s reputation, such as implying criminal or immoral behavior, defamation law may apply. However, the statement must be verifiably false. Opinions or vague descriptions rarely meet the legal threshold.

State-Level Protections

Some states, including California, Illinois, and Texas, have enacted minors’ privacy and social-media protection laws that allow limited parental requests for content removal or damages. Because these laws vary widely, it is important to consult an attorney familiar with your jurisdiction before pursuing any specific claim.

How Minc Law Can Help

Minc Law has represented families nationwide in cases involving defamation, non-consensual image sharing, and online privacy violations. Our team combines legal experience with technical expertise, offering discreet, strategic solutions tailored to each family’s unique situation.

We coordinate with platforms to pursue rapid removal of harmful content. We draft demand and takedown letters customized to each case’s specific facts and legal issues. We advise on possible civil claims where state and federal laws allow. And we set up digital-risk monitoring systems for ongoing protection.

If you believe your child has been posted on the Tea App, contact Minc Law for a confidential consultation by calling 216-373-7706 or by filling out the contact form below. Our attorneys will review the content, explain realistic options, and help you navigate the process of removal and protection, step by step.