Ministry of Justice vs. TikTok

I collaborated with an article by Gabriel Shinohara and André de Souza for O Globo about the fine imposed today on TikTok by the Ministry of Justice. My participation was as follows:

The professor of Law at the University of Brasília (UnB) Henrique Costa said that the fine is low and, therefore, is another symbolic measure. He also pointed out that the issue goes through several dimensions and that consumer rights are only one. More effective measures could come from the Judiciary, such as through a lawsuit filed by the Public Prosecutor's Office.

"This fine of R$ 1,000 is derisory, it is symbolic. So it is also a symbolic thing, and it seems to me that more effective measures – not least because the consumer protection forum is not the most powerful forum, with the most resources to carry out this fight – will really depend on a judicial initiative – said Costa.

The UnB professor also said that Tik Tok, in terms of rules for access to minors, is not very different from other platforms, but has a younger audience. The challenge, he said, is to find an economically viable solution to have an effective age check. In general, only self-declaration occurs.

"The consensus in the field of "should be" exists. No one openly advocates that children be exposed to this type of content," said Costa, adding: "This point of tension has to be addressed. So, having been a fine that is not extortionate, and being a temporary measure, until you are able to do a better verification, it seems to me a measure that I cannot criticize, because it is defending values in which there is consensus that must be protected. What I can't say, and then the criticism, is whether this is a problem that has a solution. An economically viable solution for verifying millions of people through one platform.

To read the entire article, see here:

Ministry of Justice determines daily fine of BRL 1 thousand if TikTok does not remove content inappropriate for minors

The National Consumer Secretariat ordered TikTok to suspend the display of inappropriate content for people under 18 years of age