Tiktok shares more user data than any other major social media platform

Question

A recently conducted study compared data collection among different social media apps. During the study, it was found that Tiktok and Youtube generally track user data more than any other platform. Youtube is known to collect your search history and even your location to feed you more ‘relevant’ media, while Tiktok allows third-party trackers to access your data. The worry surrounding third-party trackers is the fact that it’s almost impossible to know who has access to your data, and what information they are collecting. The study was conducted by counting how many different domains tracked different users' activity across platforms. Youtube and Tiktok averaged 14 trackings while other apps averaged around 6. Now, while the majority of Youtube's trackers were first party networks (generally deemed safe), 13 out of 14 trackers on Tiktok were third party, which as I explained, is much more concerning.  

Answer 1

The statement that TikTok shares more user data than any other major social media platform is true. TikTok has been accused of aggressive data harvesting, including in-app messages and precise devise locations. An industry expose revealed that TikTok tracks you across the web even if you don't use the app. A recent Forbes expose says, “Significant reports indicate that the data collection practice outpaces anything that Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter have ever imagined.” 

Both TikTok and other platforms like Facebook collect data about our behaviors, interactions, and preferences. However TikTok's sheer focus on video content and user behavior makes its algorithm more accurate and intrusive. As a general rule, all social media platforms will gather the same data about you, including personal information, financial information, the content you interact with, the content you post, the content you send to others, and your device information. 

Platforms can also keep your data even after you delete the app. In September 2024, research by data removal service Incogni found that numerous social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Facebook messenger, and discord kept use data for up to 180 days. Snapchat holds on to users data for up to 60 days, while Tumblr and TikTok only retain it for up to 30 days. 

https://www.tomsguide.com/computing/online-security/is-tiktok-worse-than-any-other-social-media-platforms

https://anonyome.com/resources/blog/5-reasons-why-you-should-worry-about-tiktok-and-privacy/

 

https://febabenefits.org/blog/how-tiktok-uses-your-data-behind-the-scenes/

Answer 2

When looking over several sources, I did find that TikTok does in fact, collect a lot of user data but there is no actual evidence that proves it shares more data than every other major platform. The University of Ottawa's report shows TikTok's large data collection practices and gathers information like contacts, location details, and device identifiers.TikTok's official data page also shared this information. When I looked at a research that compared instagram, TikTok, and YouTube it showed difference in transparency rather than the overall size of the data shared. Some secondary sources that I used like Tom's Guide and the Public Interest Research Group, both came to terms on TikToks application are very similar to other platforms and don't stand out among them. Even though government investigation raises privacy concerns that are valid but there is no actual evidence that TikTok shares a larger amount of user data overall. When contacting TikTok's privacy, I expected a reply but ended up getting an automated reply. After investigating, I came to the conclusion that this claim is not proven and misleading. TikTok does collect a lot of user data, but is not proven to be larger than other platforms.

Answer 3

The claim that I will be fact-checking is, “TikTok shares more user data than any other major social media platform.”

I found a record in the Library of Congress that includes discourse about a general technology overview and issues about the app. This isn’t a primary source of the discourse, but the Congress government website was cited as a trusted source for News Detective. I would also trust this source because it cites the footnotes of information that is included. The collection of information is very extensive since it includes general technology information and issues, as well as legislation. Therefore, I decided that the section that makes the most sense for the original claim is the section titled “Data Collection, Storage, and Sharing by TikTok.” According to TikTok's privacy policy, it states that the app collects a variety of user information, which includes location data, internet address, keystroke patterns, and the type of device that is accessing the app. As well as messaging and browsing history within the app. Depending on the user’s permission, the app could also collect phone numbers, phone book, and social-network contacts, GPS data, user age, user-generated content, and store payment information.

TikTok continues to state that the app doesn’t collect more user data than other social media apps and online platforms such as Facebook and Google. These companies can track user activity across devices, and TikTok claims that it doesn’t do that. According to some scholars, the data that TikTok collects seems to be comparable to what other social media companies gather and use. However, critics have described TikTok’s approach to data mining to be aggressive and have argued that, based on what the app is already allowed to track is enough to build detailed behavioral profiles of users that could potentially be shared with the Chinese government. 

TikTok has claimed that all content created by US users is stored in servers located within the US and Singapore. However, in a testimony to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on March 23, 2023, TikTok’s Chief Executive Officer, Shou Zi Chew, said that ByteDance may still have access to US data. (ByteDance is a Chinese multinational internet technology company.)

There is a variety of information in this library about TikTok, and I think that it is hard to say whether the company tracks user data more than any other data. I think there should be more information about what specific variables are being compared and what variables are being left out when discussing this topic.

Source: https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R46543?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%22tiktok%22%7D&s=1&r=8