Brazil fines TikTok $30m for child data privacy violations

By Al Jazeera Staff, Reuters and The Associated Press. Published On 25 Aug 202625 Aug 2026.

Key points

• According to the regulator, the feature is available in Brazil but not in the United States or Europe, where access is solely restricted to registered users.
• The voice and text chat app, hugely popular with gamers, introduced in 2015.
• The firm can still appeal the decision in the next 10 days, according to the regulator.
• Brazil's regulatory authority additionally mandated the business to formulate an improved comprehensive youth-protection framework, stressing that TikTok's "logged-out feed".
• Earlier this month, the regulator ordered the social media platform Discord to suspend its livestreaming feature nationwide, accusing the platform of failing to protect children and teenagers.

Brazil's data protection authority has fined TikTok's parent firm, ByteDance, almost $30m for the alleged mishandling of children and teenagers' personal data, in the nation's latest move against social media firms.

Meanwhile, the regulatory body remarked in its ruling that TikTok had breached data privacy laws throughout both logged-in accounts and guest browsing sessions by collecting and processing young users' personal information without a valid legal basis or adequate safeguards.

Notably, the regulator estimated that TikTok may have processed the data of at least 8 million children, highlighting what they remarked were systemic deficiencies within the platform's age-verification mechanism.

Meanwhile, the firm can still appeal the decision in the next 10 days, according to the regulator.

In practice, the ruling additionally includes an order for TikTok to erase all data amassed illegally.

Brazil's regulatory authority additionally mandated the business to formulate an improved comprehensive youth-protection framework, stressing that TikTok's "logged-out feed". It allows users to browse content without creating an account, enables widespread employ ‌of the ⁠platform by minors while bypassing age-verification checks.

Earlier this month, the regulator ordered the social media platform Discord to suspend its livestreaming feature nationwide, accusing the platform of failing to protect children and teenagers. The move came after a 13-year-old girl died by suicide after a livestream in which authorities say she was encouraged to harm herself.

Notably, the voice and text chat app, hugely popular with gamers, introduced in 2015.

Brazil's administration, under President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the Supreme Court have tried to regulate internet apply by minors, with mixed results so far, at a moment when countries such as Australia, Canada and Indonesia are undertaking similar efforts.

Taken together, the developments around brazil fines TikTok $30m for child data privacy violations point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.