In a significant development, TikTok, the widely popular video-sharing platform, has incurred the wrath of the European Union. The Irish Data Protection Commission has slapped TikTok with a colossal fine of $367 million for its mishandling of data pertaining to child users. The EU, citing violations of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), has given TikTok a mere three months to rectify its practices.
As TechCrunch reports, TikTok has been found guilty of breaching two critical articles of the GDPR. These pertain to lapses in the lawfulness, fairness, and transparency in data processing, as well as infringing on the rights of individuals to receive clear communication regarding data handling.
“We respectfully disagree with the decision, particularly the level of the fine imposed,” expressed a TikTok spokesperson. “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.”
While the Irish Data Protection Commission acknowledged no fault in TikTok's age verification process, it raised concerns about the platform's default settings. According to the Commission, TikTok's default configuration allows unrestricted access to content posted by all users, regardless of their age. Additionally, the platform's settings automatically defaulted children's profiles, further exacerbating the situation.
