The EU has issued its fourth set of TikTok DSA charges, saying the video platform’s default account settings put children at risk of predators and cyberbullying. The European Commission released its preliminary findings on 24 July 2026, and if the charges stick, ByteDance could face one of the largest tech fines in history.
What the TikTok DSA Charges Actually Say
The European Commission, which acts as the EU’s tech enforcer, said TikTok accounts fall short of DSA safety standards, specifically because the platform allows children to make their accounts public, enabling anyone to see their content and potentially exposing them to cyberbullying or contact from abusers.
It also found that even where an account is set to private, minors can still be located through the following and followers lists of other users, including by people who do not have a TikTok account.
For users between 16 and 17 years old, public settings also allow their content to appear in other users’ For You feeds, the Commission said. In plain terms, a child who thinks their profile is locked can still be found and watched by strangers.
EU Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen emphasised that the DSA requires platforms to integrate minor protections directly into default product design rather than offering them as optional user configurations. This is a key shift: the EU is not asking TikTok to add a safety toggle somewhere in its settings. It wants child-safe defaults baked in from the start.
How Big Is the Fine Risk?
If the findings eventually lead to a final non-compliance decision, TikTok could face a fine of up to 6% of its worldwide annual turnover. That figure is measured against the parent group, ByteDance, rather than the European subsidiary alone. For a company of ByteDance’s size, that could run into billions of dollars.
However, it is important to understand the process. These are preliminary findings, not a verdict. TikTok can now inspect the Commission’s file and reply in writing before any non-compliance decision is taken, a procedural stage that can run for months. Should the response fail to satisfy investigators, the Commission can adopt a formal decision, order changes, and impose periodic penalty payments until the platform complies.
Previously, TikTok has avoided penalties by offering commitments to address the concerns raised by the Commission. Whether that strategy will work a fourth time remains to be seen.
A Pattern of TikTok DSA Charges Since 2024
EU tech regulators have been investigating TikTok’s compliance with the DSA since February 2024. The charges have built up steadily since then.
In February 2026, the European Commission separately issued preliminary findings about TikTok’s potentially addictive design. That investigation examined features including infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications, and personalised recommendation systems.
In May 2025, the Commission reached another preliminary verdict finding that TikTok had failed to abide by the DSA by refusing to publish its advertising records, putting it in breach of rules on algorithm transparency.
The current TikTok DSA charges are the fourth set in roughly two years, making TikTok by far the most-charged platform under the EU’s new digital rulebook. Add up TikTok’s existing European regulatory bills and the total already exceeds €875 million before this latest action is even finalised. That figure covers a €345 million GDPR fine for children’s data and a €530 million fine related to data transfers to China.
The DSA in Context: How the EU Is Reshaping Platform Rules
The Digital Services Act is the EU’s main law for regulating what happens on large online platforms. It covers content moderation, advertising transparency, and protections for younger users. The DSA is not just about removing bad posts. The significance of these cases lies in the shift in regulatory focus. Governments are increasingly examining not only what appears on digital platforms, but also how those platforms are designed to influence user behaviour and how their default settings affect vulnerable groups.
The EU has already shown it will use the DSA against companies other than TikTok. On 28 May 2026, the Commission imposed a €200 million fine on e-commerce platform Temu, the highest DSA fine to date, after the company failed to adequately identify and assess systemic risks from illegal products on its platform. That precedent matters because it shows the Commission is willing to move past preliminary findings and actually impose large penalties.
The investigation is expected to shape future enforcement of the Digital Services Act, particularly around child safety by design. Technology companies operating in the EU are likely to face heightened scrutiny over how their products protect minors, making privacy defaults and safety features an increasingly important area of regulatory compliance.
Why This Matters for Pakistan
Pakistan is watching how the EU handles this, even if it does not say so officially. No nationwide legislation is currently in force in Pakistan that sets rules for how platforms must protect children online, but the debate is moving fast.
A petition filed by a 12-year-old through his father reached the Islamabad High Court, which on 11 February 2026 directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) and PEMRA to submit a report on measures to regulate minors’ access to social media.
The Punjab Assembly has also tabled a resolution seeking to bar children under 16 from accessing social media platforms. If such a bill were passed, it would prohibit minors from accessing platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, with fines between Rs 50,000 and Rs 5 million for companies that allow underage users.
To date, however, no committee has been constituted, and no formal policy recommendations or draft legislation have emerged at the federal level. The EU’s growing track record of real fines and concrete orders gives Pakistani lawmakers a clear model to study, one where regulators act first on default settings and platform design, not just on individual pieces of harmful content.
TikTok itself has a complicated history in Pakistan. The platform was banned four times between October 2020 and November 2021 by the PTA, mostly over concerns about content harmful to young users. Those bans were reactive. The EU approach being built through these TikTok DSA charges is proactive: it demands safe-by-default design before harm reaches children. That is the lesson Pakistani policymakers could take from Brussels.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the latest TikTok DSA charges about?
The preliminary findings announced on 24 July 2026 indicate that TikTok’s default account settings for users aged 13 to 17 do not provide sufficient privacy or safety safeguards. The EU says children can easily be found and contacted by strangers, even through private accounts.
How much can TikTok be fined?
Under the DSA, fines can reach up to 6% of a company’s global annual revenue. No specific fine has been determined at this stage. TikTok must first respond to the findings before any penalty can be set.
Has TikTok responded to the charges?
TikTok, owned by China-based ByteDance, says it shares the EU’s goal of protecting children online and remains committed to ongoing improvements. The company pledges to continue working with the Commission in a constructive manner. TikTok may inspect the Commission’s investigation files and submit a formal written response before any decision is issued.
Does this affect TikTok users in Pakistan?
Not directly, for now. The DSA applies only inside the EU. But the case sets a standard. If the EU forces TikTok to change its default child-safety settings globally, Pakistani users and children will benefit too. And as Pakistan debates its own child protection rules, the EU enforcement model provides a clear reference point for what effective regulation can look like.
