Why did BEUC file a complaint against TikTok?

BEUC filed a complaint on 15 February 2021 with the European Commission and the network of consumer protection authorities against TikTok. We contended that the platform breached EU consumer rights and failed to protect children from hidden advertising and inappropriate content, according to our research. This research also raised concerns under EU data protection law, which were referred to the relevant authorities. 

In addition to BEUC’s complaint, 18 of its member and other consumer organisations alerted their national authorities and urged them to investigate the social media giant’s conduct. 

Following the complaint, TikTok made commitments to change its practices, which are currently being monitored by the CPC Network.

Why did BEUC contend that TikTok breached EU consumer rights and fail to protect children?

BEUC contended that TikTok breached EU consumer rights and failed to protect children due to a range of unfair and misleading policies and practices:

• Several terms in TikTok’s ‘Terms of Service’ are unfair: They are unclear, ambiguous and favour TikTok to the detriment of its users.

• TikTok’s ‘Virtual Item Policy’ which manages the popular feature that users can purchase coins which they use for virtual gifts for TikTok celebrities contains unfair terms and misleading practices. TikTok claims for instance an absolute right to modify the exchange rate between the coins and the gifts.

• TikTok fails to protect children and teenagers from hidden advertising and potentially harmful content on its platform. Users are for instance triggered to participate in branded hashtag challenges where they are encouraged to create content of specific products. TikTok is also potentially failing to conduct due diligence when it comes to protecting children from inappropriate content such as videos showing suggestive content.

• TikTok’s practices for the processing of users' personal data are misleading. TikTok does not clearly inform its users about what personal data is collected, for what purpose and for what legal reason.

What was the real impact on consumers?

The real impact on consumers was that they were exposed to commercial practices that lacked clarity and transparency, leading to confusion about advertising, virtual purchases and the processing of personal data, with children and teenagers particularly affected.

Which BEUC members and consumer organisations took part in this action?

The following BEUC members took part in this action:

Kypriakos Syndesmos Katanaloton/CCA (Cyprus), dTEST (Czech Republic), Forbrugerrådet Tænk (Denmark), Que Choisir Ensemble (France), EKPIZO (Greece), Consumatori Italiani per l'Europa/CIE (Italy), Consumentenbond (The Netherlands), Forbrukerrådet (Norway), Spoločnosť ochrany spotrebiteľov/S.O.S. (Slovakia), Zveza Potrošnikov Slovenije/ZPS (Slovenia), Sveriges Konsumenter (Sweden), ASUFIN (Spain), and Fédération Romande des consommateurs/FRC (Switzerland), Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband/vzbv (Germany) sent a legal warning to TikTok instead of contacting the German authorities.
The following consumer organisations also supported the action:
Altroconsumo (Italy) Testachats/Testaankoop in (Belgium), Organizacion de Consumidores y Usuarios/OCU (Spain).