Former employees were concerned that sensitive data could be used as blackmail; the company says safety is a priority
Chinese social network Tick tock tracked users who have consumed LGBT content for at least one year. This is revealed by a report by the Wall Street Journal, published last Friday (5).
According to former company employees, information about publications with this theme used to be displayed on a panel showing users watching videos. The panel also identified the profile.
In this way the Tick tock “inferred” a sexual orientation of users and added them to a list that matched the content they watched. For example, if someone watches a lesbian video, the platform tags that person as “lesbian”. the same for gaybisexual, etc.
Data collection
When we create an account on a social networkwe authorize the collection of data by the platform so that the content proposal is optimized and improved by algorithms.
While TikTok doesn’t require users to provide sexual orientation when registering, this practice is common among “big tech” companies.
However, there are standards and laws, such as the General Data Protection Act (LGPD), which establish that the use of sensitive data, such as sexual orientation or religion, should be treated more carefully. Tracing them, therefore, can be considered abusive and discriminatory.
Tick tock
The WSJ revealed that officials have raised concerns about the collection of this information, fearing that this data could be used to blackmail users. LGBTQIA+.
A company spokesperson, however, told the paper that this panel was removed from the US nearly a year ago and that the data represents the interests of users and isn’t necessarily a sign of someone’s identity.
“Protecting the privacy and security of people who use TikTok is one of our top priorities,” the company said.
Former employees disagree, saying the theme of the videos a user watches is enough to infer aspects of their identity, particularly for topics like sexuality.
This isn’t the first time TikTok has been embroiled in controversy involving the LGBT community. In January, people in that audience said the platform was recommending their profiles to family and friends. This is also when all the shares have been disabled, causing them “come out of the closet” in a forced way. The social network has not commented on the matter.
Source: Terra
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