TikTok receives a £12.7m fine for violating UK data protection laws

 TikTok receives a £12.7m fine for violating UK data protection laws

TikTok receives a £12.7m fine for violating UK data protection laws

Britain's data watchdog, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), has fined TikTok £12.7m for violating data protection laws, which included the misuse of personal data of children below the age of 13 without the consent of their parents.

 The company failed to ensure that the platform was used by authorized individuals and failed to remove underage users, resulting in an estimated 1.4 million UK children under 13 accessing the platform in 2020.

 While UK data protection law does not have a strict ban on children using the internet, organizations must obtain parental or carer consent before using the personal data of children. 

The ICO's investigation revealed that TikTok did not respond adequately to concerns raised internally, and TikTok acknowledged that they should have done more to prevent underage children from using the platform.

 TikTok has a team of 40,000 safety experts working continuously to keep the platform safe, and they invest heavily to prevent children under the age of 13 from using the platform.