Bethany Frankel Sues TikTok Alleging Likeness, Voice Used to Hawk Counterfeit Goods

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Former Real Housewives of New York City star Bethany Frankel has filed a proposed class action in which she alleges TikTok has illegally ignored her demands to do something about the unauthorized use of her persona and likeness by “unscrupulous companies” to hawk counterfeit products, known as “dupe” items, on the platform. 

According to the 32-page complaint, the reputation and brand of the influencer and Skinnygirl founder have been “damaged and tarnished through unauthorized associations with counterfeit goods and other products that they do not support.” Rather than “remove and police this corrupt conduct,” TikTok, the lawsuit says, has instead taken “countervailing positions” against the television personality. 

In one instance when Frankel posted a video warning consumers that her persona was being used impermissibly and illegally to sell counterfeit items, TikTok, “ironically,” removed the plaintiff’s content as “abusive,” the case says.  

The suit contends that TikTok’s unlawful use of Frankel’s and other influencers’ personas, voices, content and likenesses without consent in connection with phony products has caused “irreparable” harm and ignores the individuals’ right of publicity. 

“Ms. Frankel never gave permission to the counterfeiters or to TikTok to unlawfully use her persona, voice, content, and/or likeness to market counterfeit products, nor was Ms. Frankel compensated in any manner for the use of her persona, voice, content, and/or likeness,” the filing reads. “The same is true for putative Class Members who have had their personas, voices, content, and likenesses used to market counterfeit products without permission or compensation.” 

The complaint says that although TikTok is not an e-commerce site, it nevertheless facilitates the sale of goods, “particularly counterfeit ones,” which are sometimes called “dupes.” Given the astronomical popularity of the app, particularly among younger Gen Z users, the promotion of counterfeit products has become “a growing issue,” and the “[h]ijacking” of likenesses, images and voices, including those of well-known influencers, has become “commonplace,” the lawsuit states. 

According to the case, TikTok is incentivized to unlawfully allow the unauthorized use of proposed class members’ likenesses and content given it generates revenue from in-app purchases, commissions from content creators, and advertisements. 

Frankel contends that numerous videos using her name, portrait, voice and content were once on TikTok to “peddle unauthorized and fake goods.” Though they have since been removed, the videos caused Frankel to receive comments from her followers thinking she had “sold out” and was “hocking [sic]” fraudulent items, the filing says. 

TikTok’s apparent refusal to police the alleged counterfeit goods problem has required Frankel and other proposed class members to “constantly monitor for and police” any unauthorized use of their persona and content. 

“This requires substantial time and investment from the content creators, effort which is not always successful, and it is not compensation by TikTok in any form whatsoever,” the case reads. 

The lawsuit looks to cover all United States residents whose personas, voices, content, or likenesses are unlawfully used on TikTok to sell counterfeit goods. 

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