British communications regulator Ofcom fined social media company TikTok 1.8 million pounds (2.1 million euros) on Wednesday for providing “inaccurate data” out of date. on managing your parental control function.

Last year, Ofcom formally asked TikTok and other video platforms to share data about their ‘Family Sync’ featurewith the aim of evaluating its effectiveness and publishing it in a report on security measures to protect children from harmful content, the regulator explains in a statement.

In the UK, regulated companies are required by law to respond to Ofcom’s requests for information in an “accurate, complete and timely” manner, and although TikTok did so in September 2023, the regulator informed the social network three months later that “the data was inaccurate” and would open an internal investigation.

According to Ofcom in the note, flaws were discovered in TikTok’s data management processes and the social network took more than three weeks to inform the regulator about the inaccuracy of its information. This delay caused delays that forced the exclusion of details of the effectiveness of TikTok’s parental controls from the report, “affecting the work of transparency” Ofcom, the regulator says.

Finally, TikTok committed to publishing information from an alternative source and provided accurate, albeit partial, data on March 28, 2024, more than seven months after the original deadline. The investigation concluded that TikTok failed to fully cooperate with Ofcom’s request for information and the production of the Child Safety Report, resulting in the multi-million pound fine imposed on the social network by the regulator.

The regulator notes that the Fine includes a 25% reduction Because it was the first time TikTok had broken Ofcom rules, it accepted the findings and proactively settled the case. “We inadvertently provided inaccurate information to Ofcom about the use of the Family Sync tool in the UK, which significantly underestimated the actual number of people using this pioneering tool for parents,” a TikTok spokesperson explained in a statement.

“While we subsequently provided correct information, We do not fulfill our obligations by not reporting the error earlier and we apologise for any inconvenience this has caused,” the social network added, reaffirming its cooperation with Ofcom and ensuring that it has implemented improvements in its internal processes.