The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has initiated an inquiry into TikTok, Reddit, and Imgur to examine the measures these online platforms are taking to protect the personal data of children aged 13-17 in the country.
As part of this investigation, the ICO will scrutinize how TikTok, which is owned by ByteDance, utilizes the personal data of children in this age group to provide recommendations and deliver content to their feeds.
The ICO’s investigation is motivated by growing concerns that social media and video-sharing platforms are using data generated by children’s online activities in their recommendation systems, potentially exposing young people to inappropriate or harmful content.
In addition to TikTok, the ICO is also investigating Imgur and Reddit to assess how these platforms use children’s information and the measures they have in place to determine the age of their users and tailor content accordingly.
The ICO will examine whether these services have complied with data protection laws and will share any evidence with the companies before making a final determination.
According to John Edwards, the UK Information Commissioner, “The responsibility to keep children safe online rests with the companies providing these services, and my office is committed to holding them accountable.”
The ICO will provide updates on any further actions it decides to take, emphasizing that ensuring children’s information rights are upheld is a priority area.
The investigation follows the enforcement of the Children’s Code in September 2021, which requires online services to adhere to a set of standards when handling children’s data.
Since then, X (formerly Twitter) has stopped serving advertisements to users under 18 and removed the option for those under 18 to opt-in to geolocation sharing. Viber has also committed to disabling personalized advertising for children.
