John,
TikTok has learned nothing. Last week, the app updated its US terms of service to allow the platform to collect biometric data, including face and voice prints.1 And in most places, the app isn’t even required to tell people that they’re doing it.2 Sign the petition and tell TikTok to reverse the policy, delete all its biometric data, and ban biometric data collection.
SIGN THE PETITION
TikTok collected biometric data long before the policy update. This came to a head earlier this year, and in February its parent company was forced to pay a $92 million settlement in a class action lawsuit.3 Instead of changing their creepy, invasive data collection practices, TikTok enshrined them in its privacy policy.
This is bad news for all TikTok users, but the platform’s youngest users will be harmed too. Whether we like it or not, "age requirements" to use social media platforms aren't effective, so the surveillance dragnet will inevitably include data harvested from children. This is not a first for TikTok either, as evidenced by a $5.7 million fine4 by the FTC for violating children’s privacy. And in the EU, the app is facing an investigation and facing billions of dollars in fines5 for collecting children's personal data.
TikTok is not getting better, it’s encoding its dangerous, invasive, and unnecessary data collection practices in its privacy policy. That way, it can blame users for “consenting” to it, even though the vast majority of people, and especially children, don’t understand the risks of biometric data harvesting. And with no ability to refuse data collection without consequences (like not being able to use the app), TikTok’s claims of “consent” are inappropriate and inconsistent with the definition of the term.
Biometric data can be used in insidious ways, like cooperating with law enforcement to harm political activists or deport immigrants. The data is also uniquely valuable, and unlike credit card numbers or other information, it cannot be changed. Tell TikTok: For the sake of user safety, autonomy, and everyone’s right to privacy, TikTok needs to reverse this policy change, delete its troves of biometric data, and ban the collection of biometric data moving forward.
For data privacy,
Erica & the Team at ❤️Fight
1. The Verge: https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/4/22518435/tiktok-privacy-policy-biometric-data-collection-faceprint-voiceprint
2. CNET: https://www.cnet.com/news/tiktok-is-letting-itself-collect-your-biometric-data/
3. Thales Group: https://www.thalesgroup.com/en/markets/digital-identity-and-security/government/biometrics/biometric-data
4. Tech Crunch: https://techcrunch.com/2019/02/27/musical-ly-tiktok-fined-5-7m-by-ftc-for-violating-childrens-privacy-laws-will-update-app-with-age-gate
5. Cnet: https://www.cnet.com/news/tiktok-could-pay-billions-in-child-privacy-lawsuit/
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