- On Tuesday (June 18), the FTC referred a grievance against TikTok and its father or mother firm, ByteDance, to the DOJ.
- This grievance is about TikTok allegedly violating the FTC Act and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
- TikTok has denied this allegation and expressed its disappointment over the FTC pursuing the authorized discourse as a result of the duo had already been in talks for over a yr to handle stated issues.
A grievance against TikTok and its father or mother firm ByteDance for allegedly violating the privateness of kids has been referred by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Speaking about the grievance, the FTC stated that in its investigation, it discovered causes to imagine that the firm is both already violating the FTC Act and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), or is on the verge of doing so.
The FTC additionally added that whereas it normally doesn’t announce when it refers a grievance to the DOJ, it feels that this time round it was in the public curiosity to make this announcement.
Note: COPPA applies to all on-line companies working in the US and governs how they deal with knowledge of kids i.e. customers below the age of 13. The FTC Act, on the different hand, offers with “unfair or deceptive acts or practices” by corporations.
When requested for a remark, a DOJ spokesperson stated that they can not reveal the contents of the referral. They additional added that prior to the referral, the DOJ consulted with the FTC on this matter and can proceed to be in talks till the concern is absolutely resolved.
What Does TikTok Have to Say in Response?
A TikTok spokesperson stated that the firm is extraordinarily disillusioned with this determination by the FTC.
The disappointment is primarily as a result of TikTok has been working with the FTC for greater than a yr now, making an attempt to handle all of its issues. The FTC instantly pursuing the authorized route as an alternative of persevering with with the collaboration is upsetting for TikTok.
However, it’s value noting that in February of this yr, the EU launched a proper investigation into TikTok to verify if its safety measures are sufficient to shield minors.
More US Pressure for TikTok
The timing of this FTC-DOJ grievance couldn’t have been worse for TikTok. The firm is already going through mounting stress from the US authorities to both lower ties with its father or mother firm, ByteDance, or danger getting banned in the US.
In April of this yr, President Joe Biden signed a invoice that gave ByteDance a yr to promote TikTok to a non-Chinese firm. This consists of 9 months of mounted time and an extra extension of three months if the President finds that ByteDance has made earnest and sufficient progress towards the sale.
Although ByteDance has assured that such a factor won’t ever occur, the invoice nonetheless went via. However, the difficult half is that ByteDance can’t simply promote TikTok. For starters, it might be an enormous loss for the firm.
Secondly, and extra importantly, Beijing has made it very clear that it’s going to block the sale as a result of it doesn’t need TikTok’s proprietary algorithm (sure, the one chargeable for senseless scrolling and smartphone habit) to go outdoors Chinese management.
Lo and behold, TikTok and ByteDance filed a lawsuit against the invoice simply over a month in the past, claiming it to be unfair and an assault on the First Amendment rights of 170 million US residents.
