The global social media company TikTok is under massive pressure - and not just because of a considerable fine: a fine of 530 million euros was imposed after it was revealed that data of European users was transferred to China without sufficient transparency. The Irish data protection authority sees this as a clear violation of the GDPR.
The company had initially denied storing European users' information on Chinese servers - this was later corrected: a “limited amount” of data had been transferred after all. Although the platform assures that this data has since been deleted, the supervisory authority criticises the fact that the standard of protection outside Europe is not comparable. Employees in China may have had access to sensitive information - without sufficient security precautions.
The company now has six months to reorganise its data processing in full compliance with the GDPR. At the same time, the Group has announced that it will take legal action against the fine. The company's management emphasises that it has neither passed on any data nor received any requests from authorities in China.
At the same time, the tone in the USA is becoming increasingly harsh. Donald Trump, who already threatened a possible ban on TikTok during his time in office, is once again talking about an ultimatum. If the Chinese parent company does not sell the US business in time, the app could be shut down completely in the United States in mid-June. Amid growing tensions between Washington and Beijing, the case now threatens to become politically explosive once and for all.
Source: www.onlinehaendler-news.de