IGarante Privacy says no to “personalized” advertising on TikTok

L’App at TikTok ends up in the crosshairs of the Guarantor for the protection of personal data. In fact, last July 7, the Authority warned the platform “that it is illegal to use personal data stored on users’ devices to profile them and send them personalized advertising in the absence of explicit consent”. A warning that comes shortly after TikTok informed users that, starting July 13, they would be joined by “personalized” advertising. That is, ads profiled on the basis of the browsing behavior held on the platform. An initiative that certainly could not meet the consensus of the Privacy Guarantor.

TikTok App: “personalized” advertising stopped by the Privacy Guarantor

In order to introduce “personalized” advertising, TikTok has modified its privacy policy inserting some “legitimate interests” of the App and its partners as the legal basis for data processing. And no more consent given by users. A change that immediately alerted the Privacy Guarantor, who immediately asked TikTok for clarification. Once all the information was collected, the Authority stated that the change is incompatible with the European directive 2002/58otherwise known as “ePrivacy”, and with Art. 122 of the Code regarding the protection of personal data. Both regulations require the consent of the interested parties “For the storage of information, or access to information already stored, in the terminal equipment of a subscriber or user”.

Beyond the violation of the regulations, the Authority says it is very concerned about the safety of minors registered on the platform. Since the TikTok App has difficulty in ascertaining the minimum age of users, there is a risk that they will be reached by inadequate “personalized” advertising. Therefore, based on the situation, the Privacy Guarantor has sent a formal warning to the company, reserving the possibility of any urgent interventions in the event that the platform does not change its intentions. And finally he “informed the European Committee of Personal Data Protection Authorities and the Irish Authority, so that they can evaluate the further initiatives to be undertaken“. This means that the TikTok App may not get away with just one warning.