The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a lawsuit against Iconic Hearts Holdings Inc., the developer of the popular teen app Sendit, and its CEO, Hunter Rice, accusing them of illegally collecting data from children and misleading users through deceptive subscription practices.
Sendit, which integrates with Snapchat and Instagram, allows users to post prompts and collect anonymous responses from friends and followers. The app has more than five million downloads on Google Play, 1.5 million ratings on Apple’s App Store, and claims a user base of 25 million.
According to the FTC’s investigation, Sendit had more than 116,000 registered users under the age of 13 in the U.S. in 2022. The complaint alleges that the company:
- Violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting personal information from children under 13—including phone numbers, birthdates, photos, and social media usernames—without parental notice or consent.
- Generated fake anonymous messages, including sexually suggestive ones, misleading users into thinking they were from friends.
- Misrepresented the benefits of its paid “Diamond Membership,” which promised to reveal senders’ identities but provided little or false information.
- Misled consumers with unclear billing practices, automatically charging up to $9.99 per week instead of a one-time fee.
The FTC says these practices violate the COPPA Rule, the FTC Act, and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA). The agency voted unanimously (3-0) to refer the complaint to the U.S. Department of Justice, which will now pursue the case in court.
At this stage, the allegations remain unproven, and the outcome will depend on court proceedings. Iconic Hearts Holdings has not yet responded to requests for comment.
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