For the privacy guarantor TikTok does not protect minors enough

According to the guarantor it is very easy to circumvent the registration rules, even if the company has made some changes, and it is not clear how the data is processed

TikTok (Photo credit should read - / AFP / Getty Images) The Italian Data Protection Authority (Gpdp) has initiated proceedings against TikTok. The dispute is that the multimedia platform of the Chinese company ByteDance pays little attention to the protection of minors.

Among the violations contested by the Guarantor there would also be the ease with which it is possible to circumvent the registration ban imposed on children under 13, the lack of transparency and the lack of clarity of the information provided to users. In addition, TikTok would have default settings that would have been evaluated by the guarantor as not respectful of privacy.

Although TikTok is already under the investigating eye of the committee that brings together the European authorities wanted in January by the same GPDP, the Italian Guarantor nevertheless felt the urgency to open a formal procedure against the multiclip video platform to better protect Italian minors.

The disputes

TikTok is first of all challenged for the fact that of registration do not adequately protect minors. The ban on enrollment imposed on children under the age of 13 would be easily circumvented once a false date of birth has been entered.

The investigation to which the guarantor refers was initiated by the offices of the authorities in March of this year and in the meantime TikTok has made numerous changes to its policies following the fines that the company had to pay for not respecting the rules dictated by the GDPR. Among these changes, one in particular concerns the use of a false date of birth to circumvent the age limit.

The guarantor also disputes the fact that the privacy policy issued to users is standardized and written in a language that is unclear even to adults. The GPDP suggests creating a section dedicated to children, written in simpler language and with alert mechanisms that indicate the risks to which they are exposed.

Furthermore, according to the privacy guarantor, the social network does not would specify how long it retains the data collected from users, nor the use made of it, nor the anonymization methods.

The company will now have 30 days to send the defense briefs and possibly ask to be heard on the matter. to the accusations. A spokesperson for TikTok said, “The top priority for TikTok is to ensure the safety and privacy of its users, especially younger ones. We recently received a communication from the Guarantor for the protection of personal data: we are still completing the verification of the authority's conclusions and we continue to collaborate with the Guarantor to provide information in response to their requests. However, we disagree with several aspects of their analysis and with some of the conclusions that have been drawn. As our evaluation is still ongoing, we cannot provide further comments at this time. ”



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