TikTok fined £12.7m for misusing children's data

TikTok has been fined £12.7m for failing to support the privateness of children, the UK's information watchdog has said.

An probe conducted by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) recovered the video-sharing app breached information extortion law.

It says the breaches happened betwixt May 2018 and July 2020.

In September, the ICO issued TikTok with a "notice of intent" - a precursor to handing down a imaginable fine.

The ICO estimates that TikTok allowed up to 1.4 cardinal UK children nether 13 to usage its level successful 2020, contempt its ain rules not allowing children that property to make an account.

UK information extortion instrumentality says that platforms that usage idiosyncratic information erstwhile offering accusation to children nether 13 indispensable person parental consent.

Information commissioner John Edwards said: "There are laws successful spot to marque definite our children are arsenic harmless successful the integer satellite arsenic they are successful the carnal world. TikTok did not abide by those laws.

"As a consequence, an estimated 1 cardinal nether 13s were inappropriately granted entree to the platform, with TikTok collecting and utilizing their idiosyncratic data. That means that their information whitethorn person been utilized to way them and illustration them, perchance delivering harmful, inappropriate contented astatine their precise adjacent scroll.

"TikTok should person known better. TikTok should person done better. Our £12.7m good reflects the superior interaction their failures whitethorn person had."