TikTok faces massive €345 million fine over child data violations in E.U.

The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) has imposed a staggering €345 million fine on TikTok for breaching the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) concerning the handling of children’s data. This investigation, initiated in September 2021, scrutinized TikTok’s processing of personal data of users aged between 13 and 17 during a specific time frame.

Here are the key findings and implications of this significant penalty.

• Processing of Children’s Data: The investigation centered on TikTok’s handling of children’s data between July 31 and December 31, 2020. Notably, the content posted by child users was set to public by default, posing a risk as it allowed anyone, irrespective of TikTok membership, to access their material.
• Lack of Transparency: TikTok was found to have failed to provide adequate transparency information to its child users. This lack of clarity about data usage further compounded the privacy concerns.
• Use of Dark Patterns: The platform was accused of employing dark patterns, which manipulate user choices, to encourage users to opt for privacy-intrusive options during registration and video posting.
• Weak Family Sharing Setting: TikTok’s Family Sharing setting identified a significant security lapse, allowing non-child users to pair their accounts with minors. This enabled adult users to enable direct messages for child users aged 16 and above.

In response to these violations, the DPC imposed a substantial €345 million fine and mandated TikTok to align its data processing practices with GDPR standards within three months.

In a statement on its website, TikTok expressed disagreement with the DPC’s decision. The company argued that the criticisms pertain to features and settings that were in place three years ago, which have since been modified by automatically setting all accounts of users under 16 to private by default. It remains uncertain whether TikTok intends to appeal the ruling.

Additionally, TikTok announced plans to introduce a redesigned account registration process for new users aged 16 and 17, pre-selecting private accounts. This update is scheduled for later this month. TikTok currently boasts approximately 134 million monthly users within the European Union.