TikTok Faces a Whopping $368 Million Fine from European Regulators for Failing to Safeguard Young Users’ Data

In a recent development, European authorities have come down heavily on TikTok, unleashing a massive €345 million ($368 million) fine against the social media giant for breaching General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) guidelines pertaining to the handling of personal data of its younger user base. The Irish Data Protection Commission, as the regulatory body overseeing TikTok’s operations, took it upon itself to investigate the platform’s compliance with privacy protection obligations for users aged 13 to 17 during the period from July 31 to December 31, 2020.

The findings were rather damning. The regulator discovered that TikTok had set the profiles of child users, or those falling within the specified age range, to “public” by default. This alarming default setting meant that their personal information was easily accessible to anyone, given that the videos they posted were also set to “public” by default, allowing anyone to comment on them. Even more concerning was TikTok’s failure to require opt-in consent for features like Duet and Stitch, which meant that anybody could freely use parts of their videos to create new content.

Furthermore, the investigation unveiled another alarming practice: TikTok allowed child users’ accounts to be connected with those of adult users, with no verification of the relationship between them, be it parent or guardian. Shockingly, this connection even permitted the adult user to enable direct messaging, a feature that should have been restricted for underage users.

This isn’t the first time TikTok has faced the music for its mishandling of user data. Earlier this year, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) imposed a £12.7 million ($15.75 million) fine on TikTok for its misuse of children’s data. The investigation revealed that TikTok had permitted 1.4 million UK children to sign up for the platform, even when they were clearly under the age of 13.

While the Irish Data Protection Commission did not establish whether TikTok had directly violated GDPR rules by allowing kids under 13 to sign up, it did find the platform in breach of GDPR for its failure to implement appropriate safeguards. This failure essentially meant that TikTok allowed users of all ages, including children as young as 12, unrestricted access to view content on its platform.

In light of these revelations, TikTok faces not only a substantial financial penalty but also a serious challenge to rebuild trust with its younger user base and their concerned parents. Data protection and user privacy are paramount concerns in today’s digital age, and regulators are sending a clear message that they will hold tech giants accountable for any lapses in safeguarding user information.

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