The European Commission has preliminarily found that TikTok is not doing enough to protect minors’ privacy and safety under the EU’s Digital Services Act. It says young users’ accounts and content can be exposed too widely, potentially increasing risks including unwanted contact, cyberbullying and predatory behaviour.

The Commission highlighted that minors can make accounts public and that content from 16- and 17-year-olds may be recommended through TikTok’s For You feed. It has recommended defaulting minors’ accounts to friends-only visibility and stopping such recommendations; TikTok can respond, but could ultimately face a fine of up to 6% of its annual global revenue.