A 12-year-old girl has won the right to anonymously sue short video app TikTok for allegedly harvesting data on minors for profit in the United Kingdom.
The platform, which has extensive ties to the Chinese Communist Party, has been illegally collecting personal data on children “in order to garner advertising revenue from corporate clients,’’ the would-be plaintiff’s lawyers described.
“The personal data at issue is used in an algorithm which analyses the user’s preferences in order to tailor the content presented to them to capture and keep their attention. This in turn encourages use of the app and, although it is stated in the app’s terms of service that it is not for use by those under 13 years old, it is clear that a large number of users are under that age,” the lawyer added.
The anonymous girl’s suit against the Beijing-based company enjoys the support of Children’s Commissioner for England Anne Longfield.
