Regardless of going through an array of challenges – which, at occasions, threatened the app’s very existence – TikTok has continued to grow in 2020, and appears set to develop into an much more vital, and influential platform within the 12 months forward.

However whereas TikTok has seemingly avoided a ban in the US (for now), the app stays underneath scrutiny, on account of considerations about its influence on younger customers, and worldwide knowledge safety concerns, given its Chinese language possession. 

On the primary level, TikTok is about to as soon as once more be examined over the methods by which it tracks and makes use of knowledge from underage customers as a part of newly launched legal proceedings within the UK. 

As per Sky News UK:

“A 12-year-old woman from London, who can’t be recognized, plans to deliver a damages declare in opposition to six corporations stated to be accountable for TikTok and its “predecessor” app Musical.ly for “lack of management of non-public knowledge”. In response to a Excessive Court docket ruling printed on Wednesday, the motion alleges the corporations have “misused the claimant’s non-public info and processed the claimant’s private knowledge” in breach of EU and UK knowledge safety legal guidelines.”

The case is the newest of many who have introduced in opposition to the app over the identical concern:

• In October, Pakistan’s Telecommunication Authority quickly banned TikTok in the nation on account of “immoral and indecent content material” within the app, which was being made accessible to younger customers. TikTok carried out adjustments and the ban was lifted shortly after. 
• In August, French officers announced a brand new investigation into TikTok’s data-gathering practices, primarily on account of considerations round its measures to guard youthful customers.
• In July 2019, the UK Data Commissioner launched an investigation into how TikTok handles the private knowledge of its younger customers, and whether or not it prioritizes the security of youngsters on its community. 
• In February 2019, the FTC fined TikTok a record $5.7 million for illegally gathering the names, e-mail addresses, footage and places of youngsters underneath age 13.  

TikTok’s measures to guard youthful customers are rightfully a key focus – in accordance with inside knowledge obtained by The New York Times, more than a 3rd of the app’s each day customers within the US are underneath 14 years of age. That is regardless of the total TikTok expertise technically solely being made accessible to customers over 13, although the app is out there to folks underneath that age threshold in what TikTok calls a “limited app experience“:

“TikTok for Youthful Customers introduces extra security and privateness protections designed particularly for an viewers that’s underneath 13 years outdated. TikTok for Youthful Customers permits us to separate customers into age-appropriate TikTok environments, according to FTC steerage for blended viewers apps. Customers enter the suitable app expertise after passing by an age-gate once they register for a TikTok account.”

So the one factor stopping youthful customers from logging-on and accessing all TikTok has to supply is a reasonably free age-gate, which little question many are subverting. That would additionally imply that much more than a 3rd of all US TikTok customers are underneath 14, as its official knowledge can be primarily based on self-registered beginning dates.

As such, the considerations round TikTok’s baby safety efforts are legitimate, and it is smart for authorities to be scrutinizing, and difficult the app. That solely turns into extra urgent because it continues to develop, and its influential capability will increase. And whereas TikTok’s total focus is on enjoyable, light-hearted quick clips, there’s clearly a stage of inherent exploitation inside that framework, with younger women, particularly, incentivized to push the boundaries of what they share with a view to garner extra likes.

That concern just isn’t remoted to TikTok, all social platforms must handle such. However TikTok’s video focus, and younger viewers enchantment, does appear to extend the danger on this respect. And whereas ideally these considerations might be addressed with out authorized problem, it is a crucial component for the platform to handle.

As such, preserving the strain on TikTok ought to assist guarantee it retains working to supply extra safety the place attainable.

As famous, the opposite lingering concern for TikTok is worldwide knowledge safety, with China’s stringent cybersecurity laws technically dictating that mother or father firm ByteDance would want to share knowledge on TikTok customers with the CCP on request. We do not know whether or not any such request has been made, nor what the Chinese language regime may do with the private info accessible on ByteDance’s servers. However whereas the US Authorities’s makes an attempt to pressure TikTok to promote into American possession lacked the required proof to realize clear passage, many different authorities have raised related considerations, and that would nonetheless see TikTok face extra scrutiny in 2021, which may impede its development.

TikTok lost 200 million users within a day in late June, when the Indian Authorities banned it on account of ongoing conflicts with the Chinese language Authorities. The CCP has continued to bristle numerous nations because it pursues its pursuits, and that would lead to additional restrictions on Chinese language apps, in a short time, if certainly tensions escalate. 

These are the important thing considerations for TikTok, as a platform, shifting ahead. The app has clearly proven that it may succeed, and develop into a challenger for the established social media gamers, and the capability of its algorithm to faucet into private pursuits, and maintain customers glued to the app, is clearly important. However till it may make sure the safety youthful customers, and appease knowledge sharing considerations, queries will linger across the app.     

With billions of {dollars} on the road, it appears doubtless that TikTok, and ByteDance, will discover resolution. However this newest authorized battle is one other reminder that it will not essentially be clear crusing forward for the newest huge social app.