TikTok, which is owned by ByteDance, was fined $5.41 million (€5 million) by the French government on Thursday for issues related to the platform’s management of internet tracking via “cookies.”
Photo Credit: TikTok
The French data protection authority CNIL stated it was only looking into tiktok.com, not the service’s more popular smartphone apps.
The CNIL discovered that users of tiktok.com had a more difficult time rejecting web trackers than they did accept them. The regulatory body also noted that TikTok’s cookie usage was not made clear to website visitors.
A representative for TikTok said, “These results pertain to historical practices that we addressed last year, including making it easier to reject non-essential cookies and providing greater information about the aims of specific cookies.”
“The CNIL itself highlighted our cooperation during the inquiry and user privacy remains a primary priority for TikTok,” the spokeswoman continued.
If a website wants to utilize cookies, which are little text files saved on a user’s browser while they browse the Web, they must have their users’ explicit agreement beforehand, according to regulations enacted by the European Union.
