TikTok, owned by ByteDance, is contesting a €345 million data privacy fine and a compliance directive imposed by European regulators for mishandling the private information of its teenage users. This is the largest-ever privacy fine for TikTok and the fifth-largest fine imposed on any tech company under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
The European Data Protection Board had raised concerns and expressed reservations about TikTok's encouragement of minors to establish public accounts and its default setting that makes their videos publicly accessible.
The Irish Data Protection Commission imposed the fine on TikTok in September 2023 following an investigation that revealed the platform's failure to safeguard underage users from unnecessary data processing. This violation pertained to data processing practices related to individuals aged 13 to 17 during a five-month period spanning from July 2020 to December 31, 2020.
The company has initiated legal proceedings in the European Union's General Court to challenge the fine and is also disputing an order from its primary data regulator in Ireland, which pertains to actions deemed "deceptive or manipulative" and potentially harmful to user privacy.
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“We respectfully disagree with the decision, particularly the level of the fine imposed. The DPC’s criticisms are focused on features and settings that were in place three years ago, and that we made changes to well before the investigation even began, such as setting all under 16 accounts to private by default” -TikTok (Source: TechCrunch) |
TikTok's operations in Dublin granted the Irish data watchdog jurisdiction over the platform. Since the alleged breach had implications across the European Union, the European Data Protection Board, comprising representatives from 30 European nations, had to endorse the final decision.
The imposed fine and compliance order are part of a broader push to intensify scrutiny of child protection measures and data privacy infringements by social media giants, including TikTok, Meta, and Elon Musk's X, along with efforts to combat the dissemination of disinformation.
The appeal launched by TikTok and the ongoing legal actions underscores the importance of data privacy within the regulatory landscape, especially when dealing with platforms boasting extensive user bases and global reach.
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