Tiktok Sued Over Children’s Data Concerns

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Due to the pandemic of COVID 19, the use of Tiktok among the youths has increased at a significant rate.
• Anne Longfield, the former Children's Commissioner for England, sues TikTok over how it gathers and uses children's data.
• Last year, an unnamed 12-year-old girl filed a lawsuit against TikTok, which was backed by Ms Longfield.
• Millions of children in the UK and EU have used the hugely popular video-sharing app, according to the lawsuit.
• If the case is successful, the children involved may be owed thousands of pounds each.
• TikTok said that the case had no substance and that it would contest it.

INTRODUCTION

TikTok, the famous video and content sharing app, is facing a lawsuit in the UK over its use of children's data, with the claim being lodged on behalf of millions of children who have used it in the UK and across Europe.

TikTok has a global user base of over 800 million people. In the United Kingdom alone, it is estimated that over 3.5 million children are affected.

Anne Longfield, a former children's commissioner in England, filed the lawsuit, claiming that the app may have obtained personal details from any child who has used the app since May 2018, regardless of their account status or privacy settings.

DETAILS TO THE SUIT

Anne Longfield, who is working as a "litigation partner" for an unnamed twelve-year-old girl who is leading the class action, said that if the lawsuit is successful, affected children will obtain thousands of pounds each.

“Parents and children have a right to know that their children's private details, including phone numbers, physical locations, and videos, is being unlawfully collected,” she said.

“We believe the allegations lack substance and plan to aggressively defend the action,” Tiktok, which is owned by Chinese tech firm Bytedance, said.

Tiktok is accused of violating European and UK data privacy laws by processing children's data without appropriate security measures, accountability, guardians' permission, or legitimate interest, according to the petitioners, who are represented by law firm Scott & Scott.

Ms Longfield told the BBC that she was concentrating on TikTok because, while all social media sites collect data, TikTok's data collection practices were "excessive."

"The advertisement revenue of TikTok and ByteDance is based on the personal details of its users, including children. It is unethical for the company to profit from this knowledge while failing to meet its legal obligations and moral responsibility to protect children online."

The lawsuit, which is currently being heard in the High Court, demands that the firm remove all of the sensitive details of children and seeks billions of pounds in damages.

It's not the first time Tiktok, which has about millions of users in Europe, has been chastised for its data practices.

“TikTok is used by 44% of eight to 12-year-olds, according to Ofcom, the UK's independent media regulator. We estimate that 3.5 million children in the United Kingdom and many more across Europe are affected by this claim.”

The UK Information Commissioner's Office is currently investigating TikTok for similar data breaches. TikTok is designed for users over the age of 13. “The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has been investigating TikTok's compliance with UK data protection laws, including how it protects children's privacy rights. Our research is approaching completion, and we intend to release our results later this year,” a spokesperson told the Financial Times.

“Clearly, they are aware that under-13s are using it; businesses always claim that children enter the incorrect age, but in my opinion, that isn't good enough,” she said. “Knowing that kids can do that, you'll need to take extra steps to provide more rigorous verification of children online.”
“We have robust policies, processes, and technology in place to help protect all users, especially our adolescent users,” TikTok said. We believe the allegations are without substance, and we plan to vigorously defend ourselves.”

“I'd like to see this as a landmark case to make it clear that there are limits to what families are able to sign up for with social media companies,” Longfield said.

HISTORY OF TIKTOK SUITS

The US Federal Trade Commission fined the app a record $5.7 million (£4.2 million) in 2019 after it was accused of secretly gathering information from children under the age of 13. This is the latest setback for the short video business, which is popular among teenagers. Because of its Chinese parent company, TikTok has come under increased scrutiny, including from the national security-focused Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US is "certainly looking at" banning TikTok, implying that the company exchanged details with the Chinese government, which it denies.

Tiktok was blocked in India last year as part of a broader crackdown on Chinese-owned applications due to security concerns, and the UK privacy watchdog is reportedly looking into the software.

Senior agency official Tariq Gandapur testified at the hearing that contact had been formed with TikTok to ensure that anyone who shared "vulgar" material was blocked.

ByteDance, a Chinese company, owns the app, which has been downloaded nearly 39 million times in Pakistan.

“The app has assured us that it will filter and moderate content,” said Jahanzeb Mehsud, a lawyer for Pakistan Telecommunications Agency, to AFP.

After the first brief ban in October, the Chinese-owned platform – which is extremely common among Pakistani youth, especially in rural areas – agreed to moderate content.

The company has been prosecuted in South Korea for how it gathers data on children, and the Information Commissioner's Office has investigated it in the United Kingdom.

Musical.ly, which was later absorbed by TikTok, was accused of intentionally hosting content created by users under the age of 13.

TikTok was told to remove the information and implement an age verification scheme.

CONCLUSION

Governments all over the world have begun to take stern measures to protect children online. The United Kingdom recently released a draft of its Online Safety Bill, which will establish a duty of care standards for tech platforms.

Members of the US Senate and House of Representatives told the Financial Times last week that they want to pass legislation to limit social media companies that sell goods to children under the age of 16, especially on data and privacy issues.