Owned by China's ByteDance, TikTok has seen rapid growth
worldwide, particularly among teenagers. However a number of incidents have
prompted concerns about its privacy and safety policies.
The European Commission on Friday said that it had launched
a formal dialogue with TikTok and national consumer groups to review the
company's commercial practices and policy.
European Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders said greater
digitalisation brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic has created new risks, in
particular for vulnerable consumers.
"In the European Union, it is prohibited to target
children and minors with disguised advertising such as banners in videos,"
he said in a statement.
TikTok said it would discuss with the the Irish Consumer
Protection Commission and the Swedish Consumer Agency measures it recently
introduced. Both bodies are leading the talks.
"We have taken a number of steps to protect our younger
users, including making all under-16 accounts private-by-default, and disabling
their access to direct messaging," the company said in a statement.
"Further, users under 18 cannot buy, send or receive
virtual gifts, and we have strict policies prohibiting advertising directly
appealing to those under the age of digital consent."
© Reuters