“The investigation allowed us to verify the responsibility of TikTok in the dissemination of content such as those related to the ‘challenge’french scar‘, which can threaten the psychophysical safety of usersespecially if they are minors and vulnerable,” the entity explained this Thursday on its website.
Specifically, the AGCM has imposed a fine of 10 million euros “in a joint and several way” to three companies of the Bytedance group, which includes the Irish company TikTok Technology Limitedthe British TikTok Information Tecnologies and the Italian TikTok Italy Srl.
The agency, which began the investigation in March 2023, maintains that TikTok “has not taken adequate measures to prevent the dissemination of said content” despite the fact that, in its usage guidelines, the company assures that the platform is “a safe space“.
“The guidelines are applied without sufficient regard to the specific vulnerability of adolescentscharacterized by peculiar cognitive mechanisms from which derives, for example, the difficulty in distinguishing reality from fiction and tendency to emulate group behavior“said the AGCM.
The AGCM also highlights that these contents are disseminated through “a system of recommendation based on an algorithmic profile of the users you select constantly what videos assign to each consumer“, with the objective of “increase your interactions and the time spent on the platform.”
“This causes undue conditioning for users, who are encouraged to use the technology more and more. platform“concludes the statement from the AGCM, which last year carried out, with the help of the Special Antimonopoly Unit of the Finance Guarda registration at the company’s Italian headquarters.
The investigation began following andence in the form of a retor which arrived from France and which consists of pinch your cheekbones so hard and for so long that it has to bruise, but may even leave signs permanent.
A TikTok spokesperson assured that the company “does not agree with the decision” adopted by the Antitrust Authority.
“Content linked to the so-called ‘French scar’ averaged only 100 daily searches in Italy before the AGCM announced the start of its research last year. We have long been reducing the visibility of these contents for users. users under 18 years of ageeven excluding them from the ‘For you’ page,” he added, quoted by local media.
In the last week, the intention to ban TikTok in some countriesas USAhas been revived with legal initiatives.
#TiktTok #fined #Italy #allowing #selfharm #challenges #minors
