Student sues app for allegedly stealing video for 'friends with benefits' ad

A 19-year-old University of Tennessee freshman is suing the makers of a social matchmaking app after the company allegedly lifted a video from her TikTok page and used it — without her knowledge or consent — in an advertisement suggesting she was looking for casual sexual encounters. The company then supposedly targeted that ad at men living in her own dormitory.

Kaelyn Lunglhofer filed the lawsuit on April 28 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee against Quantum Communications Development Limited, a British Virgin Islands-based company, and its Chinese affiliates. The defendants own and operate a social media and messaging app called Meete. Per the lawsuit, Meete claims to have 17 million users worldwide.

According to the complaint, Lunglhofer posted a video to her public TikTok account on May 31, 2025 — the day of her high school graduation — showing off an orange outfit from her bedroom while music played in the background. Defendants allegedly pulled a 10-second clip from that video and used it as the backdrop for a Meete advertisement that ran on social media platforms like Snapchat.

The ad, per the complaint, featured female narration stating, "Are you looking for a friend with benefits? This app shows you women around you who are looking for some fun. You can video chat with them." Lunglhofer's face was on screen, and the Meete logo was prominently displayed.

According to the suit, Meete allegedly used geolocation technology to serve the ad specifically to male users within the Knoxville, Tennessee area. This includes men living on other floors of her on-campus dormitory building. Lunglhofer found out about the ad because one of the male residents in her dorm alerted her to it, she said in an interview with local ABC affiliate, WKRN.

The suit brings claims under the federal Lanham Act (which addresses businesses' use of misleading claims), Tennessee's right of publicity statute — known as the ELVIS Act — and Tennessee common law defamation. Lunglhofer is seeking compensatory damages of $750,000, disgorgement of Meete's profits tied to the ad campaign, and punitive damages. She is also seeking to have the ad removed entirely.

Mashable reached out to Meete but did not receive a response in time for publication. The firm representing Lunglhofer also did not yet respond to a request for comment.