Brazil fines TikTok $30m for child data privacy violations

Brazil's data protection authority has imposed a fine of nearly $30 million on TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, for allegedly mishandling the personal data of children and teenagers. This action is the latest in a series of regulatory measures against social media companies in the country.

The authority ruled that TikTok violated data privacy laws by collecting and processing the personal information of young users, both in logged-in accounts and during guest browsing sessions. These actions were reportedly carried out without a valid legal basis or sufficient safeguards. The regulator estimates that TikTok may have processed the data of at least 8 million children, citing systemic deficiencies in the platform's age-verification mechanisms.

TikTok has the option to appeal the decision within the next 10 days. The ruling also mandates that the company erase all data that was illegally amassed. Furthermore, TikTok is required to formulate a comprehensive and improved youth-protection framework. The regulator highlighted that TikTok's "logged-out feed," which allows users to browse content without an account, enables minors to access the platform widely while bypassing age-verification checks. This feature is available in Brazil but not in the United States or Europe, where access is restricted to registered users.

This move follows a similar action earlier this month, when the regulator ordered Discord to suspend its livestreaming feature nationwide. Discord was accused of failing to protect children and teenagers, following the suicide of a 13-year-old girl who authorities say was encouraged to harm herself during a livestream. Brazil's government, under President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the Supreme Court have been attempting to regulate internet use by minors, with varied success, amid similar efforts by countries like Australia, Canada, and Indonesia.