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TikTok Fined €530 Million for Illegally Transferring European Data to China

The Irish Data Protection Commission issued the third-largest GDPR fine, citing unlawful data transfers and transparency failures, with a six-month compliance deadline.

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FILE PHOTO: TikTok app logo is seen in this illustration taken, August 22, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
TikTok was penalised for breaching European Union protection standards
FILE - A TikTok sign is displayed on top of their building in Culver City, Calif., on Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Vogel, File)

Overview

  • TikTok was fined €530 million by the Irish Data Protection Commission, including €485 million for illegal data transfers to China and €45 million for inadequate transparency.
  • The investigation found TikTok failed to ensure EU-equivalent protections for European user data accessed by staff in China under Chinese surveillance laws.
  • TikTok disclosed in April 2025 that limited European user data had been stored in China, contradicting previous claims; this data has since been deleted.
  • The company has six months to bring its data processing into compliance with GDPR or face suspension of all data transfers to China.
  • TikTok plans to appeal the decision, citing its €12 billion Project Clover initiative to enhance European data security and claiming no data has been provided to Chinese authorities.