The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced significant progress in its ongoing investigation into TikTok on Tuesday.
The agency voted 3-0-2 to file a formal complaint against the social media platform and its parent company Byte bounce The Department of Justice (DOJ) said the government may step up efforts to address concerns about how TikTok collects and handles data from underage users.
The FTC’s investigation stems from a 2019 music networka video sharing app, was Tik Tok Late 2017.
TikTok subsequently agreed to pay $5.7 million To settle Federal Trade Commission charges that Musical.ly “unlawfully collected children’s personal information.”
The FTC’s latest statement on Tuesday (June 18) stated that the investigation found evidence that TikTok may have violated COPPA again, or may have violated the FTC Act prohibiting unfair or deceptive business practices.
“The investigation found reason to believe [TikTok and ByteDance] The law was being violated or was about to be violated and litigation was in the public interest, so the committee voted to refer the complaint to the Department of Justice.
Federal Trade Commission
“The investigation found reason to believe [TikTok and ByteDance] A violation of the law is being or is about to be violated and litigation is in the public interest, so the Commission voted to refer the complaint to the Department of Justice under the procedures outlined in the Federal Trade Commission Act.
In a statement in response to the referral, TikTok highlighted its year-long cooperation with the FTC and expressed disappointment in the agency’s decision to sue.
“We have been working with the Federal Trade Commission for more than a year to address its concerns. We are disappointed that the agency filed a lawsuit instead of continuing to work with us to find a reasonable solution,” TikTok said.
“We are disappointed that the agency filed a lawsuit instead of continuing to work with us to seek a reasonable resolution. We strongly disagree with the FTC’s allegations, many of which relate to past events and practices but are factually inaccurate or have been resolved .
Tik Tok
“We strongly disagree with the FTC’s allegations, many of which relate to past incidents and practices that are factually inaccurate or have been resolved. We are proud of the work we do to protect children and will remain committed to protecting children, We will continue to update and improve our products.
TikTok added: “We deliver an age-appropriate experience with strict safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users, and voluntarily roll out safety features like default screen time limits, family matching, and default privacy for those under 16.”
Earlier this year, TikTok launched global youth Councila move aimed at improving user safety as the company faces increasing scrutiny over its ability to protect young users from harmful content and addictive algorithms.
Outside the United States, TikTok also faces formal proceedings from the European Union, focusing on the platform’s protection of minors, addictive design and risk management of harmful content.
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