US associations and activists accuse TikTok of violating children's online privacy law

In times of social isolation, TikTok quickly became one of the favorite applications of many kids and grades. However, a group of associations and consumer, children's and privacy rights activists filed a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) complaint against the company.

According to the complaint, the group alleges that the company is violating the Federal Online Privacy Protection for Children Act (COPPA). We note that TikTok currently has many users under the age of 13, indicates the group, adding that many of the young people in question started uploading videos to the platform in 2016.

In February 2019, TikTok had to pay $ 5.7 million Federal Trade Commission after being accused of violating COPPA rules. At the time, the company took a number of measures to ensure the safety of the youngest, including the elimination of all data collected from users who were minors.

Associations and activists claim that TikTok did not delete the data it had committed to delete. The group also says that the company is not making an effort to keep parents informed about the collection of children's data, calling on the FTC to open a new investigation into its practices.

In addition to the complaint filed by the FTC associations, a lawsuit against TikTok was opened in a Chicago court. The complainants claim that the company is collecting biometric data from users without their consent through a facial recognition system.

In an international press release, TikTok states that privacy is one of its priorities and that it is committed to making the application a safe space for all users. The company recently decided to include new parental control features to complement Family Safe Mode.

Through Family Pairing, parents can link their children's account, allowing greater control over security settings. TikTok also decided to disable the direct messaging feature for all users under the age of 16.