TikTok is a popular social media app that allows users to create and share short videos. The app has over 1 billion monthly active users worldwide. However, TikTok’s data collection practices have raised privacy concerns.
TikTok gathers an extensive amount of data about its users. The app tracks information about users’ interests, activity on the platform, and devices. TikTok also collects location information, messages, contacts, and other sensitive data.
Much of this data collection happens behind the scenes without user knowledge or consent. TikTok’s parent company ByteDance is based in China, which has heightened fears about government surveillance and access to TikTok user data.
This article provides an in-depth look at what information TikTok collects and how it uses and shares that data. It will analyze TikTok’s data practices in the context of privacy best practices and discuss the associated security risks.
User Profiles
TikTok collects and stores a range of data on user profiles, including names, usernames, profile photos, bios, and more. When users sign up for a TikTok account, they are required to provide a name and username, and have the option to add a profile photo and bio. TikTok stores this profile data on its servers.
Specifically, TikTok collects and stores the following user profile data:
- Name – The first and last name provided during account creation.
- Username – The unique username chosen during account creation.
- Profile photo – The profile photo or avatar uploaded by the user. TikTok stores multiple versions of this photo at different resolutions.
- Bio – The short description a user can provide on their profile.
Users have some ability to control this data through TikTok’s privacy settings. However, even if a profile is set to private, TikTok still stores the user’s name, username, and profile photo. According to TikTok’s privacy policy, the company may retain profile data for as long as an account is active.
User Content
When a user uploads a video, caption, comment or sends a message on TikTok, that content is stored by TikTok. According to TikTok’s Newsroom article, “How we secure personal information and store data,” videos, images, captions, comments, messages, and other user-generated content are stored in TikTok’s servers in data centers in Singapore and the United States.
TikTok states that they store this user content to enable global services and provide users with a consistent experience wherever they are. The content is stored and processed to make recommendations, show relevant ads, prevent abuse, and analyze performance and trends.
While TikTok claims U.S. user data is stored in the U.S., an article from Leaders states “TikTok does indeed store some American data on servers in China.” This indicates that some U.S. user content may be stored in China despite TikTok’s claims.
Sources:
https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-us/tiktok-facts-how-we-secure-personal-information-and-store-data
User Analytics
TikTok collects extensive analytics on user engagement and content performance. This includes data on content views, likes, comments, shares, follows, traffic sources, and more. According to TikTok’s Creator Portal, creators can access analytics on their own content through the app, including likes, comments, shares, plays, profile views, follower growth, and traffic sources.
TikTok states that it provides these analytics to “help you better understand your audience and improve your content.” The analytics aim to help creators optimize their videos for maximum engagement and reach. This data enables creators to identify their top-performing content as well as assess trends and metrics over time.
Sources indicate TikTok gathers detailed analytics not just on creator accounts, but on every user. TikTok’s analytics and algorithm heavily influence the content users see in their feeds. The app curates each user’s “For You” feed based on their inferred interests and engagement patterns. According to a 2021 report, TikTok collects more data on its users than any other social media platform. It continuously analyzes this data to serve users targeted, engaging content.
While TikTok provides transparency into analytics for creators, ordinary users have limited ability to access analytics on their own engagement and profile. TikTok leverages analytics behind the scenes to maximize addictiveness and time-spent on the app.
Sources:
Understanding your analytics | Creator Portal
TikTok shares your data more than any other social media …
User Preferences
TikTok collects a significant amount of data on user preferences in order to personalize the content shown in each user’s For You feed. This includes information on a user’s watch history, interests, and searched keywords.
According to TikTok’s Newsroom article, the For You feed “reflects preferences unique to each user” and “recommends content by ranking videos based on a combination of each user’s personal preferences, interests, and interactions with content on the platform.” https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-us/how-tiktok-recommends-videos-for-you
TikTok’s Support article further explains that its recommendation systems “suggest content based on user preferences as expressed through interactions on our platform, such as following an account or liking a post.” The platform analyzes the videos a user has liked, shared, commented on or otherwise interacted with in order to discern their preferences. https://support.tiktok.com/en/using-tiktok/exploring-videos/how-tiktok-recommends-content
In addition, TikTok records keywords and phrases users search for within the app. As described in a LinkedIn article, TikTok’s AI analyzes this search data to further understand a user’s preferences and interests. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/power-ai-how-tiktok-analyzes-your-video-preferences-edward-standley-csbae
Device Information
TikTok collects a significant amount of data about the devices used to access the app, including hardware model, operating system version, IP address, and more.1 This allows TikTok to fingerprint devices to track users across devices and better target ads and recommendations. Specifically, TikTok accesses the following device information:
- Hardware model – The make and model of the phone or device being used.
- OS version – The version of the operating system running on the device such as iOS or Android.
- IP address – The unique address assigned to each device connected to the internet.
IP addresses allow TikTok to determine a user’s approximate location and internet service provider. Combined with the hardware and OS details, TikTok can build extensive device profiles of users.2
Location Information
TikTok collects approximate location information based on device data like SIM card and IP address. In regions where location services are enabled, TikTok can collect precise location data including GPS coordinates and WiFi access points (source). Users have the option to disable location services, which prevents TikTok from collecting precise location. However, approximate location can still be determined from IP address and other identifiers. While TikTok states location data improves content recommendations, the app’s ability to pinpoint a user’s location has raised privacy concerns.
Cookies and Tracking Technologies
TikTok uses various cookies, pixels, and software development kits (SDKs) to track user activity on their platform as well as across the internet. This allows them to gather data for ad targeting and personalization even when you are not using the TikTok app directly.
According to Spyscape, TikTok deploys tracking cookies as soon as you land on their website, before you’ve even created an account. These cookies record information like your IP address, location, web browser details, and browsing history.
TikTok also utilizes Facebook and Snapchat pixels to gather data about users’ activities on other platforms. The Facebook pixel in particular allows them to create targeted ads by matching user data across platforms.
Lastly, TikTok’s SDKs are embedded in thousands of other mobile apps. This allows them to gain insight into users’ habits across many different apps, not just TikTok, according to privacy researchers.
Third Party Sharing
TikTok shares user data with third parties including advertisers, vendors, service providers, affiliates, and analytics companies. This data helps these entities deliver targeted advertising, analyze usage, and perform services on behalf of TikTok.
According to TikTok’s privacy policy, they may share the following types of information with third parties:
- User profile information like username, profile photo, and bio
- User generated content like videos, images, and captions
- Usage metrics like views, likes, comments, shares
- Inferences like user interests and preferences
- Device information like IP address, operating system, browser info
- Precise location data derived from IP address
While TikTok states they don’t sell data directly to third parties, their partnerships with platforms like Facebook and Google allow targeted advertising using TikTok data. User data may also be exposed during corporate changes like ByteDance’s acquisition of Musical.ly.
Overall, TikTok’s third party sharing introduces significant risks in terms of user privacy and data security. Users have limited control over how their information gets shared and utilized by external companies.
Securing User Data
One of the main concerns around TikTok is the security of user data and whether China-based ByteDance could access that data. There have been several reports questioning TikTok’s data practices:
In July 2022, senators called on the FTC to investigate TikTok’s data security after a report that China-based ByteDance engineers had access to US TikTok user data (Source).
In March 2023, TikTok CEO Shouzi Chew was questioned by Congress on privacy and data security concerns. Lawmakers appeared unconvinced by Chew’s statements that TikTok protects US user data (Source).
TikTok claims they store US user data in Virginia with backups in Singapore. However, there are still concerns that the data could be accessed from China (Source).
While TikTok claims they protect user data, their security practices have come under scrutiny. There is ongoing concern about Chinese access to TikTok user data in the US.
