United Kingdom: Dictok accuses of illegally collecting data from children in Europe

The former UK Commissioner for Children took legal action on Tuesday against the video platform Dictoc He is accused of illegally collecting personal data from millions of children in the UK and Europe. Anne Longfield is suing on behalf of these children (16 in the EU and 13 in the UK). Dictoc And its Chinese parent company Bite Dance, According to a report, hope to get billions of pounds in compensation. About 3.5 million people are affected in the United Kingdom, it said.

She believes that every child who used to Dictoc Since May 2018, i.e. since the introduction of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), whether he has an account or not may be affected by this data collection. This personal information includes biometric data such as phone numbers, videos, pictures, location of the connection or facial recognition. The complaint, brought by law firm Scott + Scott, ensures that Dictoc collects data without adequate warning, without transparency, and without seeking approval, as provided in the law.

Voluntarily “opaque”?

According to Ms Longfield, Dictoc, which has 800 million users worldwide, is deliberately “opaque” in the use of data, which is “incredible value” for the company, including the parent company. Bite Dance, Registered in the Cayman Islands, is expected to generate nearly $ 30 billion in revenue by 2020, two-thirds of which comes from advertising, he said. ” Dictok is a very popular site that has helped kids stay in touch with their friends during the incredibly difficult year. But behind the funny songs, dance challenges or background, there is something malicious. ”, He explains.

“We want Dictoc to stop its questionable data collection practices and demand the destruction of all personal information obtained illegally while children use the app.”, According to her. Dictok’s spokesman complained in response. Without foundation “ And company “Seriously wants to defend himself”. “Privacy and security are the top priorities for Dictoc and we have strong practices and technologies to protect all users, especially teenagers.”, He concluded.

Diktock was fined in February 2019 for illegally collecting personal data, including their names, email and mailing addresses, from minors under the age of 13.