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Frederick Douglas Waako

The European Union has launched a formal investigation into TikTok to determine whether the company is doing enough to protect minors on its platform.

The EU said it would look at whether TikTok is doing enough to address risks on the platform through measures such as age verification tools which are meant to keep minors from seeing inappropriate content.

According to Reuters, the EU industry chief Thierry Breton said he took the decision after analyzing the short video app’s risk assessment report and its replies to requests for information.

TikTok’s age verification tools, aimed at preventing children from accessing inappropriate content, “may not be reasonable, proportionate and effective”, the European Union Commission said in a press release.

Social media companies operating in the European Union are bound by obligations set out in the Digital Services Act (DSA), landmark legislation, enacted in August 2023, that seeks to regulate large tech companies more stringently and protect people’s rights online.

Companies found to have flouted the rules can be fined the equivalent of up to 6% of their annual global revenue.

TikTok has almost 136 million monthly active users in the European Union according to the European Union Commission.

According to CNN, it is the second time in as many months that the commission has launched formal proceedings against a large social media company. In December the body said it was investigating X to determine whether it had failed to meet certain legal obligations to fight the spread of illegal content and disinformation.

 However, in a bid to avert any fears about its operations, TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter told CNN that it “has pioneered features and settings to protect teens and keep under 13s off the platform”.

“We will continue to work with exerts and industry to keep young people on TikTok safe and look forward to now having the opportunity to explain this work in detail to the commission”, Brooke added.

Meanwhile this comes at a time when a new report from The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) uncovers the prevalence of challenges faced by children living in countries across the European Union, including online sexual abuse.

Photo Credit: European Union Flag and the TikTok logo from Reuters Press