TikTok Created List of Users Who Watched LGBT Content
TikTok compiled a list of users who watch LGBT content on the app, The Wall Street Journal reports(Opens in a new window).
According to former employees who spoke to the Journal, TikTok users who watched LGBT content were included on a list that could be viewed by authorized staff. Users were identifiable from their ID number which TikTok gives each user when they start watching videos on the popular app.
In its report the Journal notes that the practice took place for “at least a year” and was done in order to understand trends and find ways to boost engagement on the platform. The employees said that TikTok also created lists of users who watched different content, but those topics were not considered to be sensitive.
TikTok, which did not immediately respond to PCMag’s request for comment, told the Journal that “safeguarding the privacy and security of people who use TikTok is one of our top priorities.”
A spokesperson for the popular video app was quoted by the Journal as saying that TikTok “doesn’t identify potentially sensitive information such as sexual orientation or race of users based on what they choose to watch,” nor does TikTok “infer such information.” The spokeswoman added that the data collected purely represents users’ interests and “isn’t necessarily a sign of someone’s identity” and that prior to the data’s deletion, TikTok had “protocols” in place to ensure sensitive data was only seen by authorized employees.
The Journal’s report adds that TikTok workers in the US, UK and Australia raised concerns about the data collection practice to higher-level executives at the company in 2020 and 2021, amid fears that some employees might share the data with outside parties, or be used to blackmail users. The
Read more on pcmag.com
