The EU states that TikTok is still not taking sufficient measures to safeguard children.
Regulators have stated that TikTok's privacy settings are insufficient under the Digital Services Act.
The European Commission has accused TikTok of not adequately safeguarding minors, asserting that the platform's current account settings do not comply with the child safety requirements established by the Digital Services Act (DSA). While these findings are preliminary, if they are affirmed, TikTok could incur a fine of up to 6% of its global annual revenue.
Reasons the EU believes TikTok falls short
The Commission claims that TikTok permits minors to keep their accounts public, which allows their content to be seen by anyone, including individuals without a TikTok account. Regulators have also indicated that content from older teenagers (aged 16 and 17) can still be promoted to other users in the For You feed, which heightens the risk of unwanted contact, cyberbullying, or exploitation.
The Commission maintains that stronger privacy measures for children should be automatically enabled, rather than depending on users to adjust their settings manually. Furthermore, it advocates for content from minors' public profiles to be viewable only by approved TikTok followers, rather than a wider audience, and suggests that minors’ content should not be displayed in the For You feed for other users.
Henna Virkkunen, the EU's Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, emphasized that protecting minors online should be mandatory, asserting that platforms need to inherently integrate child safety into their services, rather than making it an optional feature.
TikTok's response
TikTok has contested the findings, expressing its alignment with the Commission's objective of shielding young users and highlighting that it already provides over 50 privacy and safety features for teenagers. As reported by Reuters, TikTok mentioned that accounts belonging to users under 18 are set to private by default, younger teens cannot utilize direct messaging, and their content is not suggested in the For You feed. The company intends to review the Commission's findings and continue collaborating with regulators prior to a final decision.
The Commission's statement indicates these are preliminary findings, giving TikTok the chance to formally respond before the EU determines whether the platform has breached the DSA. If the regulators remain unconvinced, they may issue a non-compliance ruling alongside financial penalties. This investigation is among several ongoing DSA inquiries into TikTok as European regulators tighten their oversight on how major social media platforms ensure the safety of younger users online.
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The EU states that TikTok is still not taking sufficient measures to safeguard children.
The European Commission has stated that TikTok might be breaching the Digital Services Act by not sufficiently safeguarding the accounts and privacy of minors on its platform.