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ByteDance, a Chinese business, owns the well-known video-sharing software Tiktok, which has been penalized millions of dollars for mismanaging of children’s data.
After allegations that TikTok had violated further privacy safeguards for users’ personal information, Britain’s privacy watchdog smacked the short-video sharing app with a $15.9 million fine on Tuesday.
In spite of the platform’s policies banning young children from opening accounts, John Edwards, the Information Commissioner who announced the fine, claimed that TikTok let as many as 1.4 million UK children under 13 to use the app in 2020.
There are rules in place to guarantee that our kids are just as safe online as they are offline. TikTok did not follow those regulations, according to Mr. Edwards in a statement.
Although TikTok was aware that the youngsters were using the app, which is extremely well-liked among teenagers, it was claimed that it did not have their parents’ permission to process their data.
Between May 2018 and July 2020, the British watchdog was looking into data breaches.
Nevertheless, it is just the most recent instance of the increased scrutiny that TikTok will face in the West, where governments are growing increasingly concerned about the hazards the app poses to data privacy and cyber security.
Further, Mr. Edward claimed that children whose access to the program was erroneously granted was subject to TikTok’s collection and exploitation of their personal information.
Hence, he explained, “their data may have been utilized to monitor them and profile them, perhaps sending damaging, unsuitable content at their very next scroll.”
But, TikTok quickly responded that it did not agree with the watchdog’s judgment.
It said that it would keep contemplating the following steps while also reviewing the choice.
In an effort to clarify its position, TikTok said in a statement, “We invest substantially to help keep under 13s off the site and our 40,000-strong safety staff works around the clock to help keep the platform safe for our community.
However, TikTok claimed that after the breaches, it had enhanced its sign-up process by preventing users from claiming they are old enough and by checking for further indications that a user is under the age of 13.
Other violations of UK data privacy law were also subject to the penalty.
According to the watchdog, TikTok fails to adequately and plainly warn users about how their data is gathered, utilized, and shared.
Young users would probably not be able “to make informed decisions” about whether and how to use TikTok without this knowledge, the report stated.
A 27 million pound fine was first imposed on TikTok, but it was lowered after the business convinced authorities to dismiss other accusations.
2019 saw TikTok hit with a $5.7 million fine from American regulators in a case involving identical accusations of improperly collecting children’s personal information.
