TikTok is a rapidly growing social media platform that allows users to create and share short videos. With over 1 billion monthly active users worldwide, TikTok has quickly become one of the most popular apps among teenagers and young adults (Source). However, TikTok’s meteoric rise has raised concerns about the types of user data the app collects.
This article examines the various categories of data that TikTok gathers from its users. We will look at information provided during account registration, content created within the app, user behaviors and interactions, device data, advertising data, financial information, biometric data, and aggregated app statistics. The goal is to provide a comprehensive overview of how TikTok handles user data and privacy.
We will begin by exploring the user information TikTok asks for when signing up for an account.
User Information
When a user signs up for TikTok, they are required to provide basic personal information like their name, email address, phone number, and a short bio. TikTok also accesses a new user’s phone contacts and connections to other social media platforms in order to find friends and suggest content (Source 1).
In addition to this basic information, TikTok collects extensive data on a user’s location, device details, watch history, searches, and in-app interactions. The app tracks a user’s precise location at all times along with information about their device such as the model, operating system, IP address, and unique device identifiers. TikTok also stores a complete record of every video a user watches, searches they perform, ads they click, comments they post, and accounts they interact with (Source 2). This data provides deep insight into each user’s interests, habits, and relationships on the platform.
Content Created
TikTok gathers a significant amount of data from the content users create on the platform, including videos, messages, comments, and metadata like hashtags and captions [1]. This includes:
- Videos – TikTok records and analyzes the actual video content users create, including visual and audio elements.
- Messages – Direct messages between users are scanned to detect inappropriate content or behavior [2]
- Comments – All comments made by users are stored and analyzed.
- Captions and hashtags – Metadata added to videos such as captions, tags, hashtags, and effects are tracked.
- Deleted content – Even if a user deletes a video, message, or comment, TikTok retains the data.
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By gathering data on user-generated content, TikTok can understand usage patterns, optimize its algorithms, detect policy violations, and target advertising [3].
In-App Behavior
TikTok tracks a significant amount of user behavior within the app. According to a Medium article by Patrick Klin, TikTok monitors things like how long users watch videos, what content they like, share, or comment on, and what profiles they visit or content they search for.
Specifically, TikTok gathers data on the duration of time spent viewing videos as well as what point users stop watching. The app also records user interactions such as liking, sharing, commenting, and even keyboard taps and text entered within the in-app browser. In addition, TikTok logs the profiles users visit and any searches conducted within the app.
According to TikTok’s In-App Events page, the platform utilizes this in-app behavior data for analytics and advertising purposes. However, privacy advocates have expressed concern over the extent of monitoring conducted by the app.
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[2] https://ads.tiktok.com/help/article/in-app-events?lang=en
Device Information
TikTok collects extensive data about the device used to access the app. This includes hardware model, OS version, and device settings like language preferences (Fox Business). The app gathers your device’s IP address, advertising ID, and other identifiers that allow tracking across apps and websites (Public Interest Research Group).
TikTok also accesses your mobile carrier and network information like WiFi connection and signal strength. This allows localized content and analytics. Additionally, it can tap into sensor data from your device like accelerometer, gyroscope, and magnetometer readings (CNN). This sensor data enables features like facial recognition and augmented reality filters.
Advertising and Analytics
TikTok gathers extensive data about users’ interactions with ads and content promoted by advertisers. This includes when a user views, clicks, or otherwise engages with an ad. TikTok can track if a user visits an advertiser’s website or downloads their app after clicking an ad. The platform provides advertisers with analytics about ad performance, such as impressions, reach, clicks, landing page visits, installs, and purchases.
TikTok pixel tracking allows businesses to track site activity of TikTok users who have interacted with their ads. This includes page views, events like signups or purchases, and more. TikTok states this data is aggregated and anonymized before being shared with advertisers. However, privacy advocates have raised concerns about the extent of tracking enabled by TikTok pixels off the app itself (source).
Financial Information
If users make monetary transactions on TikTok, the company collects financial information. For TikTok creators who monetize their content, TikTok gathers payment details when users cash out their earnings.[1] This includes bank account and routing numbers for direct deposit payments.
TikTok also obtains financial data when users purchase virtual coins or gifts to send to creators. To make these in-app purchases, users must provide payment information like credit card numbers. There are concerns about this financial data being accessed by employees of TikTok’s parent company ByteDance, which is based in China.[1]
Biometric Data
TikTok collects biometric data from its users, including face and voice recognition data, as well as fingerprint data for payments. According to a 2021 GDPR lawsuit against TikTok, the app’s facial recognition capabilities allow it to collect biometric data on users for ad targeting and feed personalization purposes without proper consent (Source). Facial recognition data is considered particularly valuable for digital surveillance and tracking (Source). For users that enable fingerprint authentication for payments in the app, TikTok also collects and stores fingerprint data.
Aggregated Statistics
TikTok collects anonymous aggregated statistics like general demographics and trends to understand usage patterns. For example, TikTok may gather data on the ages and genders of users or what types of content are most popular in certain geographic regions (Source). This allows them to see overall viewership numbers for different categories of content.
According to their privacy policy, none of this aggregated data can be traced back to individual users. It is anonymous and used to detect trends and usage patterns in the app. Marketers and brands can use these aggregated analytics for ad targeting purposes. For instance, understanding that comedy videos perform well among 18-24 year old males in the US allows advertisers to optimize their campaigns, without accessing data on specific users (Source).
Conclusion
TikTok collects various types of data from its users in order to provide a personalized experience, serve targeted advertising and analyze app usage. Key types of data gathered include user information like age, name and email; content created such as videos, messages and comments; in-app behavior such as liked videos, search history and settings; device information including IP address, location data, mobile carrier and device ID; advertising data for targeting purposes; financial information if purchasing coins; and aggregated statistics.
While this data collection enables TikTok to optimize the app experience, it does raise privacy concerns around how user data may be utilized or shared. TikTok claims to take measures to protect user data and not sell it to third parties, but their privacy practices have come under scrutiny. Users can try to limit data collection by adjusting app permissions, turning off ad personalization, making accounts private and avoiding logging in on multiple devices. But ultimately, those using the app should be aware that their activity and information is being extensively monitored for commercial purposes.
In closing, TikTok gathers a vast array of user data that supports its business model but also warrants caution around user privacy. Individuals should stay informed on TikTok’s evolving data practices and make use of available privacy controls if concerned.
