If the lawsuit sees the light of day in court, then TikTok may be forced to re-evaluate its privacy and data safety policies.
TikTok faces court troubles in the UK
In a recent Business Insider report, it was revealed that a 12-year-old girl from England is in the process of filing a lawsuit against the popular China-based social media platform that’s all the craze today.
On the surface, the TikTok phenomenon has reshaped the way talent is discovered. Short doses of funny videos, some made up of quirky viral dances, have become the new format of social media sharing.
Instagram and YouTube have upgraded their platforms to include copied versions of TikTok. Music conglomerates have even restructured their rollout plans to include TikTok as a priority platform to share new music.
However, according to a girl from England, the social media platform is blatantly misusing data, particularly that of minors.
Who is this brave little girl?
Anne Longfield is England’s children’s commissioner and with her role due to expire in four months, her last assignment may be a court battle with TikTok over privacy issues.
The girl’s identity has been protected for two reasons: (1) she is a minor; and (2) if she’s revealed to the world, this might open the door for cyberbullies to troll her.
TikTok responds to pending lawsuit
The social media platform, formerly known as Musical.ly, has since issued a response to the court application, stating that it has every intention of defending its current privacy and data safety policies.
“Privacy and safety are top priorities for TikTok, and we have robust policies, processes, and technologies in place to protect all users and our younger users in particular. As this application was made without notice, we first became aware of the application and the High Court’s judgment when it was filed and are currently considering its implications,” a TikTok representative told the cited publication.
