Italy imposes a €10 million fine on TikTok for neglecting to safeguard minors
Italy's competition authority announced on Thursday a €10 million (approximately $11 million) fine against TikTok, citing the social media platform's inadequate measures to protect minors.
According to the AGCM watchdog, "The company has not adequately implemented mechanisms to monitor content published on the platform, especially those that could endanger the safety of minors and vulnerable individuals.
Additionally, this content is consistently reintroduced to users due to their algorithmic profiling, encouraging a continuous increase in the social network's usage."
The fine targets three subsidiaries of China’s Bytedance group, namely Ireland’s TikTok Technology, TikTok Information Technologies UK, and TikTok Italy.
The watchdog stated that TikTok had not fully adhered to the guidelines it promoted to reassure consumers that the app was a "safe" environment.
"In reality, the guidelines are applied without adequately considering the unique vulnerability of adolescents, characterized by specific cognitive mechanisms such as difficulty distinguishing reality from fiction and a tendency to emulate group behavior," it explained.
The watchdog emphasized that "potentially dangerous" content is promoted through TikTok's recommendation system.
It cited the example of the "French scar challenge," where children pinch their cheeks violently to simulate bruising, a trend popularized by numerous tutorials on TikTok, causing concern in the education and health sectors.
In response, TikTok stated that it disagreed with the watchdog's decision.
Before the AGCM announced its investigation last year, there were only about 100 daily searches in Italy for content related to the "French Scar," on average.
For a significant period, we have restricted the visibility of this content to individuals under the age of 18 and excluded it from appearing in the 'For You' feed."
The short-video application has experienced a surge in popularity globally. However, concerns have been raised in Western capitals due to its ownership by the Chinese tech conglomerate ByteDance and allegations of its subservience to the ruling Communist Party in Beijing.
On Wednesday, the US House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill that would compel TikTok to sever ties with its parent company or risk a nationwide prohibition.
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