The move increases the mounting pressure on TikTok in the United States. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has received a complaint from the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on possible privacy breaches involving TikTok and its Chinese parent firm ByteDance.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) claims that its own inquiry "uncovered reason to believe" that the companies "are violating or are about to violate the law". A representative for TikTok expressed their disappointment with the decision in a statement to BBC News. Legislation that was approved earlier this year that forbids TikTok from operating in the US if ByteDance does not sell the company is unrelated to this case.
The agency said that the focus of its inquiry was possible FTC Act and Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) breaches. The FTC said that while it generally does not notify the public when it refers a complaint to the DOJ, in this case it believed it was in the public interest to do so. Online services that collect, utilize, and disclose personal information of children under 13 are subject to COPPA regulations. "Unfair or deceptive acts or practices" by businesses are the focus of the FTC Act.
As a response, a representative for TikTok said that the firm rejected the accusations and that it had "been working with the FTC for more than a year for dealing with its concerns." "We're disappointed the agency is pursuing lawsuits instead of continuing to work with us on an equitable solution," they said.
When may a new US legislation prohibit TikTok?
BBC News was informed by a DOJ representative that the agency "cannot comment on the substance of the referral that extends from the FTC against TikTok."
"Consistent with our normal approach, the Justice Department consulted alongside FTC in advance of this referral and will keep continuing to do so as we consider the claims," they said.
The FTC's decision increases the pressure that TikTok is under in the US.
A statute that allowed ByteDance a maximum of a year to market the software or risk having it banned in the nation was signed into law by President Joe Biden in April.
This indicates that the deadline will probably occur in 2025, after the inauguration of the 2024 presidential victor. The bill was presented in response to worries—which TikTok has refuted—that the business would provide Chinese authorities access to user data. With the goal of preventing the legislation, TikTok filed a lawsuit in May, claiming that it is a "extraordinary intrusion on free speech rights" that belong to the firm and its 170 million American users.
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