Brazil fines TikTok $30 million for unlawful data processing of minors
Brazil's National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) fined ByteDance $30 million on August 26, 2026, for unlawfully collecting and processing personal data from children and teenagers on TikTok without proper safeguards. The authority found that TikTok failed to prevent minors from accessing the platform and used their data for targeted advertising.
What happened
Brazil's National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) fined ByteDance 153.7 million reais ($30 million) on Tuesday, August 26, 2026, for unlawfully processing personal data of children and teenagers on TikTok.
The ANPD found that TikTok was not implementing necessary measures to prevent minors from accessing the platform, and that data of children and adolescents was being collected and used to offer targeted advertising to them.
According to Technical Note 50, users who downloaded TikTok in Brazil reached the personalized feed immediately without declaring an age or reading terms of service.
Reported impact
ByteDance was ordered to delete data collected in violation of regulations for users aged 13 to 18 whose parental authorization is not regularized within 60 working days.
TikTok committed to suspend all adverts for users who are not logged in and to implement a compliance plan to improve child safety measures.
Index analysis
The ANPD stated the fine was a 'powerful signal' to other social media platforms regarding how seriously the agency takes child safety enforcement.
The agency had initiated proceedings to verify compliance of 22 social media networks and platforms with Brazil's new law to protect children and teenagers online.
Governance controls
ByteDance was given 10 working days to appeal the fine and must instruct every partner it passed user records to delete the same data, with failure to comply carrying a daily fine exceeding $26,000.
TikTok was required to report back with system logs signed off by its data protection officer documenting compliance.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.