TikTok possibly facing multi-million pound fine after UK watchdog investigation

Social media app TikTok could possibly be facing a 27 million pound fine after the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) claimed it may have breached data protection laws in the region.

Following an investigation, the watchdog said its provisional view is that TikTok fell short in protecting children’s privacy when using the video sharing platform, with violations allegedly present between May 2018 and July 2020.

According to the ICO’s release, its report found that TikTok may have processed the data of children under the age of 13 without parental consent and had possibly failed to provide proper information to its users in a concise way.

The organisation also said it had potentially processed special category data, such as racial origin, political opinions and sexual orientation, without legal grounds to do so.

The ICO added that it has issued TikTok Inc and TikTok Information Technologies UK Limited with a ‘notice of intent’, which could result in a fine for the popular app.

TikTok will be able to offer up any representations to be taken into consideration before the final verdict is decided upon.