On 24 July the European Commission sent TikTok preliminary findings: minors' accounts don't meet the safety standard of the Digital Services Act. A public child account is visible to anyone on the internet, even without registering, and content from 16-17-year-olds gets recommended to strangers. If confirmed, the fine could reach 6% of global turnover.
- On 24 July the European Commission announced preliminary findings that TikTok breaches the DSA regarding minors' safety.
- Public child profiles are visible to anyone on the internet; content from 16-17-year-olds gets recommended to everyone through For You.
- TikTok can respond in writing; if confirmed, the fine reaches up to 6% of global annual turnover.
Brussels rarely bothers with default settings. This time it's dealing with exactly that - and for good reason: the default setting is the decision the platform makes for you.
I know this mechanic from the building side: 'public by default' isn't an oversight, it's a growth engine - more visible content, more recommendations, more time in the app. That's why the change won't come from good will; it comes from a regulator with a calculator.
If you have a child on there: don't wait for Brussels - the procedure will run for months. Open their profile settings tonight. Who sees the content, who can message them, whether it's even public. Five minutes of work, and it covers exactly the holes the Commission spends four pages describing.