Brazil Fines TikTok Owner over Teen Data

Brazil’s data protection authority has fined TikTok owner ByteDance 153.8m reais ($29.81m) for allegedly violating the country’s data protection law, according to a decision published in in Brazil’s official government journal on Tuesday.

The National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) said ByteDance’s Brazilian unit had processed the personal data of teenagers aged 13 – 18 without a valid legal basis.

The decision gives ByteDance 60 business days to delete the personal data of teenagers for whom the necessary legal authorization has not been properly established and to notify third parties with which it shared the data. The company must then submit a technical report signed by its data protection officer, along with system audit logs demonstrating compliance.

ByteDance faces daily fines of 137,081.49 reais ($26,600) if it fails to comply with the deletion, reporting or notification requirements. The total penalty could be reduced by 25% if the company waives its right to appeal within 10 business days and pays the fine within 20 business days.

The move comes amid growing scrutiny worldwide of safeguards for children and teenagers on social media. Earlier this month, the ANPD ordered chat platform Discord to suspend its livestreaming features over concerns about children’s and teenagers’ exposure to harmful content.

(Reuters, Max)