FTC Slaps Video Social Networking App Musical.ly with $5.7 Million Penalty

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Musical.ly--Tik Tok

Video social networking app TikTok previously known as Musical.ly agreed to pay $5.7 million to settle the charges against it by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

It is the largest civil penalty obtained by the FTC in a case involving a violation of children’s privacy rights.

Aside from the financial penalty, Musical.ly agreed to delete all the videos created and shared by young children and to comply with COPPA going forward.

Allegations against Musical.ly

The Commission alleged that Musical.ly violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The law requires website owners or online service providers to obtain parental consent before collecting the personal information of children below 13 years old.

According to the FTC, Musical.ly collected the names, e-mail addresses, and other personal information of children without obtaining their parental consent. Since 2014, more than 200 million users worldwide downloaded the app. In the United States, the app has 65 million registered users.