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TIKTOK HAS BEEN fined €345 million by Ireland’s data watchdog following an investigation into how the social media platform processed children’s data.
The fine was imposed on TikTok Technology Limited (TTL) by the Data Protection Commission (DPC) after the probe into how certain privacy settings and features complied with obligations under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation.
The DPC inquiry examined age verification as part of the registration process and the processing of the personal data of children by the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform between 31 July and 31 December 2020.
Tiktok said that it “respectfully disagreed” with the level of the fine imposed and stated that it related to features and settings which were in place three years ago.
The DPC adopted its final decision regarding its inquiry into TTK on 1 September.
The DPC ruling described how child users progressed through the sign-up to the TikTok platform in such a manner that their accounts were set to public by default.
It said this meant that videos that were posted to child users’ account were public-by-default and comments were enabled publicly by default.
In the Family Pairing feature, the DPC said a child user’s accounts could be “paired” with an unverified non-child.
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It said that that the non-child user had the power to enable direct messages for child users above the age of 16, thereby making this feature less strict for the child user.
As part of the inquiry, the DPC also examined some of TTL’s transparency obligations, including the extent of information provided to child users in relation to default settings.
The DPC has issued a reprimand as well as an order requiring TTL to bring its processing into compliance by taking specified action specified within three months and administrative fines totalling 345 million euro.
A spokesperson for TikTok said: “We respectfully disagree with the decision, particularly the level of the fine imposed.
“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.”
It is the latest in a series of fines handed out by the DPC in Ireland to social media giants.
Earlier this year, Facebook’s parent company Meta Ireland was fined €390 million for breaches of EU data privacy rules, one of a number of fines the DPC has imposed on the company.
In January, WhatsApp was fined more than €5 million over data protection breaches and last year, Instagram was fined €405 million over the way in which it handled teenagers’ personal data.
Earlier this year in the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office fined TikTok £12.7 million because it “did not do enough” to make sure underage children were not using its platform and ensure that their data was used correctly.
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Every supermarket in Holland has had this since before I arrived 28 years ago. We pay a deposit on our bottles, plastic and glass and we get our deposit back when we return the bottles
@John Brendan Mullen: That was also a thing in all eastern european countries. It disappeared as soon as multinationals hit the market. Problem with recycling does not lie with people but with companies who are constantly looking at how to increase profit.
I remember well returnable sturdy plastic bottles for coke/fanta etc… Companies figured out that it is cheaper for them to make single use cheap plastic bottles than to bother with shipping and cleaning returnable bottles for another use.
@John Brendan Mullen: when I was staying with my aunt in Boston in 93, she used to take her empty cans to the supermarket and they had a counter near the entrance that gave you money off vouchers for your shopping for every can you returned!! Don’t know how much it was but enough to make her keep empty cans.
We had a glass bottle return in my Mam’s shop back in late 70s and early 80s and everyone brought back their glass and the various companies took em back for reuse then Tetra Pak and plastic became the norm and wiped the glass out. I always thought milk tasted nicer out of glass pint bottles. We also had a far cleaner countryside cos every child would be fighting over dumped bottles Togo and get 10p which would buy a good few sweets
@Devilsavocado: we’re leprechauns. If it makes sense we will deny it for as long as possible until one day many years later someone will have a lightbulb moment…. Meanwhile the world’s moved on….
I’m 54. As long as I recall this was standard for glass bottles since I was small. Later plasticbottles and cans were added to the system.
This was in Finland.
@John Horan: I may be wrong but I think the recycling process for glass is easier. Transport is more expensive as heavier but I think the environmental impact would still be less with glass
I remember politicians saying it wasn’t feasible to do this in Ireland. More down to the fact that they are to lazy and in bed with Multinational companies
Why cant we just be like the rest of the world and get actual coins for bringing bottles back? The homeless in germany and canada as i witnessed even go through the bins to get bottles. Less rubbish, more recycling and keeps people fed. Vouchers is a step indeed but it’s better to get that 25c back off the bottle. All adds up.
In Ireland they’ll probably set up a company first.. ‘Irish Plastic’, spend a lot of money on consultants, charge supermarkets a lot of money installing the machines….and then don’t follow through….
This is great to see but I guarantee you some little knackbag will put his hand in it, get injured and mammy will sue. Joe Duffy will hop on the bandwagon, call it a disgrace and the whole thing will be cancelled. This is ireland remember.
But you are paying for the recycling. Look on the bottles for the recycling sign, that means there is already a levy to pay for the recycling. Rip Off Ireland at its finest
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