TikTok has withdrawn its appeal against the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) £12.7 million fine for misusing children’s data, and a second appeal against an ICO information notice, so the 2023 penalty now stands.
Key points
- The 2023 fine covered the unlawful use of children’s data, including an estimated 1.75 million UK children under 13 using TikTok in 2020 without parental consent.
- The ICO also found inadequate checks to remove under-13s and unclear information about how data was used.
- TikTok also dropped its challenge to an information notice about how its recommender systems use the data of 13 to 17-year-olds, so the ICO can now take that investigation forward.
- The withdrawals follow the Upper Tribunal’s August 2026 rejection of TikTok’s argument that its processing was for artistic purposes.
Online services likely to be used by children should review their age assurance, transparency information, and use of children’s data in profiling and recommendations against the Children’s code. The regulator’s focus on recommender systems is likely to continue under the new Information Commission.
Source: Information Commissioner’s Office
This update is general information, not legal advice. If you would like help assessing the impact on your information security or privacy programme, contact us.
