POPULAR social platform Reddit has been slapped with a £14.5million fine over failures to protect children’s privacy, the UK’s data watchdog has said.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) accused the site of using data unlawfully, potentially exposing them to inappropriate and harmful content.
ICO says Reddit ‘failed to apply any robust age assurance mechanism’Credit: AFP
Reddit has more than 16million daily active users worldwideCredit: Getty
is one of the world’s biggest social sites with more than 16million daily active users worldwide.
The ICO said the platform failed to apply any robust age assurance mechanism and therefore did not have a lawful basis for processing the personal information of children under the age of 13.
They warned company bosses that relying on users to declare their age had posed risks to children “as it is easy to bypass”.
Among its responsibilities, the regulator checks that sites following a so-called “Children’s code” designed to make the internet extra safe for younger users.
Meanwhile, Ofcom has responsibility for enforcing the which ensures sites have strict ID checks to check users ages.
has already fined a number of sites for failing to apply strong enough measures.
It recently hit 8579 LLC, a porn provider behind a number of sites, with a £1.3million fine.
“It’s concerning that a company the size of Reddit failed in its legal duty to protect the personal information of UK children,” said UK information commissioner John Edwards.
“Children under 13 had their personal information collected and used in ways they could not understand, consent to or control.
“That left them potentially exposed to content they should not have seen.
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“This is unacceptable and has resulted in today’s fine.
“Let me be clear. Companies operating online services likely to be accessed by children have a responsibility to protect those children by ensuring they’re not exposed to risks through the way their data is used.”
Reddit told The Sun that it prohibits and removes users under the age of 13 globally and launched age verification for mature content in the UK last year.
The company intends to appeal the decision.
“Reddit doesn’t require users to share information about their identities, regardless of age, because we are deeply committed to their privacy and safety,” a spokesperson said.
“The ICO’s insistence that we collect more private information on every UK user is counterintuitive and at odds with our strong belief in our users’ online privacy and safety.“
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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