Canada: TikTok Collected Sensitive Data From Children

TikTok has agreed to improve child safety and privacy measures following a Canadian investigation. The probe found that TikTok’s current protections were not strong enough. Canadian privacy officials said the platform failed to keep children under 13 off its app. They also found TikTok collected and used children’s data for ads and content targeting. The company now promises to make its platform safer for young users.

The investigation was led by Canada’s federal privacy commissioner and provincial authorities from Quebec, British Columbia, and Alberta. It found that hundreds of thousands of Canadian children use TikTok each year. This is despite the app’s policy stating it is not meant for users under 13. Investigators said TikTok gathered personal information from many children and used it for marketing. This raised serious concerns about privacy and child safety.

Privacy commissioner Philippe Dufresne said TikTok collects vast amounts of data, including from children. This data is used to target ads and videos. Dufresne warned that such targeting can harm young users. In response, TikTok agreed to improve age-checking methods and explain its data use more clearly. It also promised to stop allowing advertisers to target users under 18, except with broad categories.

The changes come after months of talks during the investigation. TikTok also said it would expand the privacy information it provides to Canadians. A company spokesperson welcomed the agreement but said TikTok disagrees with some findings. However, the spokesperson did not mention which ones. TikTok claims it remains committed to strong privacy and transparency practices.

Canada now joins other countries in closely watching TikTok’s activities. Governments are concerned about data security due to TikTok’s ties to China. The app is owned by Chinese company ByteDance. Meanwhile, TikTok is also under review in the U.S. and European Union. In Canada, the government has ordered the company to end its operations over national security concerns, a decision TikTok is challenging.