TikTok fined $7 mil. for unlawful collection of user data for ads

The TikTok app icon on a smartphone in this 2025 illustration photo. Reuters-Yonhap

Korea's privacy watchdog said Thursday it has fined TikTok 10.3 billion won ($7 million) for unlawfully collecting and using users' behavioral data from third-party services to personalize advertisements.

The Personal Information Protection Commission said it levied the fine on Singapore-based TikTok, which operates the social media giant's services in Korea, for violating the personal information law.

The watchdog said TikTok collected behavioral data from 9.45 million users in Korea through tools distributed to third-party websites and applications, and used them for personalized advertisements.

The commission said the company failed to properly notify users of such actions.

Separately, the watchdog ordered corrective measures against two Apple subsidiaries and fined them a combined 252 million won for personal information violations, such as collecting voice recordings and transcripts of users of the company's Siri voice assistant without consent.

The commission said Apple collected voice recordings of Siri users and text transcripts of the recordings without their permission until August 2019.

While the company started asking for consent for voice recordings in October 2019, it did not do so for transcripts, according to the watchdog.