The European Union (EU) has opened a formal
investigation
into
TikTok
’s possible violations of online
content rules
protecting children and ensuring transparent advertising, putting the short video sharing social media platform at risk of fines.
The investigation follows analysis of TikTok's risk assessment report and its replies to information requests, said EU industry chief Thierry Breton.
The same was reported by news agency Reuters.
“Today we open an investigation into TikTok over suspected breach of transparency & obligations to protect minors: addictive design & screen time limits, rabbit hole effect, age verification, default privacy settings,” Breton said on X (formerly Twitter).
What will EU’s tikTok probe focus on
Citing the European Commission, the report said that the investigation will focus on the design of TikTok's system, which will include “algorithmic systems which may stimulate behavioural addictions and/or create so-called 'rabbit hole effects'.”
It will also probe if TikTok has adequate measures to ensure child safety and privacy. Additionally, the EU will assess if TikTok provides a reliable database on advertisements for research purposes.
“As well as the issue of protecting minors, the Commission is looking at whether TikTok provides a reliable database on advertisements on its platform so that researchers can scrutinise potential online risks,” it added.
EU's Digital Services Act (DSA) requires large platforms to tackle illegal content and public safety risks. If found guilty, TikTok's owner ByteDance could face fines up to 6% of its global turnover. TikTok said it will cooperate with the investigation and has pioneered features to protect teens and keep underage users off the platform.
“TikTok has pioneered features and settings to protect teens and keep under 13s off the platform, issues the whole industry is grappling with,” a TikTok spokesperson was quoted as saying.
This is the second DSA investigation after Elon Musk's social media platform X was probed in December last year.
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