Did you know TikTok Faces Heavy Fine for GDPR Breach, Must Halt Data Transfers to China if Non-Compliant
Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC) has fined TikTok a hefty 530 million euros
for breaching EU privacy laws. The company was found transferring user
data from the European Economic Area (EEA) to China, a clear violation
of the GDPR regulations.
The fine isn't the only penalty. TikTok
has six months to align its data handling practices with EU standards.
If the company doesn't make the necessary changes in time, it must halt
all data transfers to China.
The
DPC's investigation uncovered that TikTok allowed staff in China to
access personal data from European users without proving the same level
of security protections that the EU requires. TikTok also failed to
consider China’s national laws, which could expose data to government
authorities.
At first, TikTok told the DPC it wasn't storing EEA
user data on Chinese servers. However, to everyone’s surprise, TikTok
later admitted that some data had been transferred and deleted after it
was discovered in February.
This fine is part of a broader
pattern. Regulators have been cracking down on companies that provide
misleading information, like how Ofcom recently penalized OnlyFans for
misrepresenting its age verification system.
