TikTok agrees to pay £12.7 million fine after abandoning appeal
TikTok will pay a £12.7 million penalty imposed by the UK Information Commissioner’s Office after dropping its challenge to the fine.
The Information Commissioner’s Office imposed a £12.7 million fine on TikTok for inadequate safeguards for children under 13 and improper use of their personal information. After initially contesting the penalty, TikTok has now dropped its appeal, obligating it to pay the sum. The regulator also cancelled TikTok’s appeal against an information notice seeking insight into the platform’s recommender-system processing of data from users aged 13 to 17, which had stalled the investigation.
Deputy commissioner Emily Keaney emphasized the importance of robust child-data protections and welcomed the withdrawal of the appeals. TikTok’s spokesperson argued that the ICO’s conclusions pertain to a historical window from May 2018 to July 2020 and do not represent the company’s current youth-safety policies.
Why it matters
The fine highlights regulatory scrutiny of social-media platforms’ handling of children’s data in the UK.
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