Britain’s privacy watchdog launched an investigation into TikTok on Monday. It wants to check whether TikTok adequately protects the privacy of children, the authority announced. TikTok is not the only platform targeted by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO): The forum Reddit and the image-sharing website Imgur are also under investigation.
Specifically, the authority will investigate how the Chinese company ByteDance uses the personal information of 13 to 17-year-old users. ByteDance operates TikTok and requires personal data for its algorithm, which suggests content in the feed. „If we find there is sufficient evidence that any of these companies have broken the law, we will put this to them and obtain their representations before reaching a final conclusion,“ the Information Commissioner’s Office said in a statement.
Britain has passed legislation that set tougher rules for social media platforms, including a mandate for them to prevent children from accessing harmful and age-inappropriate content by enforcing age limits and age-checking measures. TikTok has not yet commented on the investigations. ek