The commission said preliminary findings indicate that TikTok accounts children they do not meet the security standards required by the Digital Services Act (DSA), which requires major technology companies to do more to prevent harmful and illegal content.
According to Brussels, the platform allows minors to set their accounts as public, which makes their content available to a wide range of users and increases the risk of cyberbullying or contact with abusers.
The commission also assessed that children's private accounts are not fully protected either, because they can be found through lists of followers and accounts that users follow, even by people who do not have a TikTok account.
The European Commission has asked TikTok to change the default settings for minors' public accounts so that content is only visible to users who have been accepted by children.
"The Digital Services Act requires platforms to build the protection of minors into the design of their services and holds them accountable when they fail to do so," said European Commissioner for Technology Hena Virkunen.
This is the fourth case that the European Commission has launched against TikTok in the last two years under the Digital Services Act.
TikTok: We will consider and cooperate
TikTok said it would review the Commission's findings and cooperate with regulators, saying that accounts for users under 18 have more than 50 preset security and privacy options, and that teen accounts are private by default.
The company can now review the Commission's filings and respond before a final decision is made, which could include a fine of up to six percent of TikTok's annual global revenue.
Source: FoNet
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