Brazil fines TikTok $30 million for child data privacy violations

Brazil’s National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) has issued a formal order compelling ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, to delete data it obtained from children without proper consent. The directive, announced on Thursday, requires the immediate erasure of personal information—including names, birth dates, and usage patterns—collected from users under 18 through the platform’s Brazilian operations. The ANPD cited violations of the country’s General Data Protection Law (LGPD), which mandates explicit parental authorization for processing minors’ data, and warned that non‑compliance could trigger fines of up to 2% of the company’s global revenue or daily penalties for each day the breach persists.

The ruling arrives amid a broader regulatory push in Brazil targeting major technology firms for alleged privacy infringements. Recent months have seen similar enforcement actions against Meta and Google, reflecting heightened scrutiny of how global platforms handle user data in the region. Authorities emphasized that the order is part of an ongoing effort to strengthen data protection standards and ensure that foreign tech companies adhere to local legal requirements. ByteDance has indicated it will cooperate with the ANPD and is expected to submit a compliance report within the stipulated timeframe.