There’s an estimated 1.4 million children under 13 in the UK using the platform
TikTok has been fined £12.7m for failing to protect the privacy of underage children using its app.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which oversees data privacy in the UK, estimates that in the UK the social media giant allowed as many as 1.4 million children under 13 – the minimum age to open an account according to its own rules – to use its platform in 2020.
The watchdog’s investigation found that the firm had not done enough to check that users were above this age and to remove the accounts of underage users.
Therefore, TikTok used the data of children 12 and under without getting appropriate consent from their parents, say the ICO.
This data may have been used to track them and profile them “potentially delivering harmful, inappropriate content at their very next scroll” said UK Information Commissioner John Edwards.
It’s not the first time the firm, owned by China-based ByteDance, has come under fire for how it has used children’s information. In 2019, it was fined $5.7 million (£4.5 million) by the US government for a similar issue.
Mr Edwards added: “There are laws in place to make sure our children are as safe in the digital world as they are in the physical world. TikTok did not abide by those laws.
“TikTok should have known better. TikTok should have done better. Our £12.7m fine reflects the serious impact their failures may have had.”
There have been major concerns around the world raised about ByteDance’s connections to the Chinese government.
The UK has recently banned the app on government phones, with similar sanctions announced by Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the European Parliament and the European Commission.
TikTok said it disagrees with the ICO’s decision to issue the fine.
“We invest heavily to help keep under 13s off the platform and our 40,000 strong safety team works around the clock to help keep the platform safe for our community.
“We will continue to review the decision and are considering next steps.”
