TikTok was fined 530 million euros ($600 million) by its lead EU privacy regulator on Friday over concerns on how it protects user information and was ordered to suspend data transfers to China if its processing is not brought into compliance within six months.
Ireland's Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) said TikTok, owned by China's ByteDance, failed to show that EU users' personal data, some of which is remotely accessed by staff in China, was afforded the high level of protection provided for under EU law.
As a result, the short-video platform did not address potential access by Chinese authorities to the data under counter-espionage and other laws identified by TikTok as materially diverging from EU standards, the DPC said in a statement.
TikTok said it strongly contested the finding and that it has used the EU's own legal framework, specifically so-called standard contractual clauses, to grant tightly controlled and limited remote access. It plans to appeal the ruling.
It also said the decision fails to fully consider data security measures first rolled out in 2023 that independently monitor remote access and ensure EU user data is stored in dedicated data centres in Europe and the United States.
TikTok, which has grown rapidly among teenagers around the world in recent years and has 175 million users across Europe, added that it has never received a request for EU user data from the Chinese authorities, and has never provided data to them.
"This ruling risks setting a precedent with far-reaching consequences for companies and entire industries across Europe that operate on a global scale," TikTok said in a statement.
The DPC also found that while TikTok said throughout the four-year inquiry that it did not store EU user data on servers in China, it disclosed last month that it discovered in February that a limited amount was stored in China and since deleted.
"The DPC is taking these recent developments very seriously. We are considering what further regulatory action may be warranted," DPC Deputy Commissioner Graham Doyle said.
It is the second time TikTok has been reprimanded by the DPC. It was fined 345 million euros in 2023 for breaching privacy laws regarding the processing of children's personal data in the EU.
The powerful Irish privacy regulator, the lead regulator in the EU for many of the world's top tech firms due to the location of their regional headquarters in Ireland, has also fined the likes of Microsoft's, LinkedIn, X and Meta, opens new tab since it was given sanctioning powers in 2018.
Under the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), that also covers European Economic Area member states Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, the lead regulator for any given company can impose fines of up to 4% of its global revenue.
Hundreds of people gathered for a second consecutive week at Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, on Friday (12 December), to support the family of Master Sg...
Britain’s King Charles III said on Friday, 12 December, that his cancer treatment is expected to be reduced in the coming year, using a televised ad...
Talks aimed at ending the war between Ukraine and Russia are set to continue in Berlin this weekend, with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff due to meet Ukraini...
Türkiye’s Trade Minister Omer Bolat said Friday that discussions in Washington with U.S. officials have strengthened efforts to expand bilateral tr...
Lebanon is prepared to demarcate its border with Syria, President Joseph Aoun said on Friday, while noting that the dispute over the Shebaa Farms coul...
Japan has lifted a tsunami advisory issued after an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.9 hit the country's northeastern region on Friday (12 December), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. The JMA had earlier put the earthquake's preliminary magnitude at 6.7.
Iran is preparing to host a multilateral regional meeting next week in a bid to mediate between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The United States issued new sanctions targeting Venezuela on Thursday, imposing curbs on three nephews of President Nicolas Maduro's wife, as well as six crude oil tankers and shipping companies linked to them, as Washington ramps up pressure on Caracas.
The resignation of Bulgaria's government on Thursday (11 December) puts an end to an increasingly unpopular coalition but is likely to usher in a period of prolonged political instability on the eve of the Black Sea nation's entry into the euro zone.
An extratropical cyclone has caused widespread disruption across Brazil’s São Paulo state, with powerful winds toppling trees and power lines, blocking streets and leaving large parts of the region without electricity.
Britain’s King Charles III said on Friday, 12 December, that his cancer treatment is expected to be reduced in the coming year, using a televised address to urge people across the country to take part in cancer screening programmes, officials confirmed.
Talks aimed at ending the war between Ukraine and Russia are set to continue in Berlin this weekend, with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and senior European leaders, a U.S. official said.
Türkiye’s Trade Minister Omer Bolat said Friday that discussions in Washington with U.S. officials have strengthened efforts to expand bilateral trade, moving closer to a $100 billion target.
Lebanon is prepared to demarcate its border with Syria, President Joseph Aoun said on Friday, while noting that the dispute over the Shebaa Farms could be addressed at a later stage.
Greek farmers blocked the Port of Thessaloniki on Friday (12 December) as part of nationwide protests demanding delayed European Union subsidies and compensation for rising production costs and livestock losses.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment