Reddit fined $30 million for illegally using children's personal information
Reddit issued with £14.47m fine for children's privacy failures | ICO
https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/media-centre/news-and-blogs/2026/02/reddit-issued-with-1447m-fine-for-children-s-privacy-failures/
ICO fines Reddit £14.47M for letting kids slip past the gate • The Register
https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/24/ico_fines_reddit/
Reddit fined $20 million by UK for not effectively checking users' ages | The Record from Recorded Future News
https://therecord.media/reddit-children-age-checks-uk-ico-fine
UK fines Reddit for not checking user ages aggressively enough - Ars Technica
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/02/uk-fines-reddit-for-not-checking-user-ages-aggressively-enough/
On February 24, 2026, local time, the ICO announced that Reddit had illegally used children's personal information. It also accused Reddit of putting children at risk by not verifying the ages of users accessing the platform. As a result, the ICO fined Reddit £14.47 million.
Reddit's terms of service prohibit 'use of the platform by children under the age of 13.' Despite this, Reddit did not take any measures to verify the ages of users accessing the platform.
Then, in July 2025, Reddit announced that it would implement an age verification system to access adult content. This meant that users who opened Reddit accounts were required to enter their age. However, Reddit's age verification system relied solely on users' self-declaration. As a result, the ICO warned Reddit that 'reliance on self-declaration can be easily circumvented and may pose a risk to children.'
In December 2025, the ICO announced it was continuing to monitor Reddit's handling of children's personal information as 'part of its ongoing work focusing on online platforms that primarily rely on self-declaration to verify age.'
Finally, on February 24, 2026, the ICO announced that it would impose a fine on Reddit. The ICO stated that Reddit had no lawful basis for processing personal information of children under the age of 13 because it had not implemented a stronger age verification mechanism than self-declaration, thereby violating the UK's online safety law .
The ICO also gave Reddit until January 2025 to conduct a data protection impact assessment to assess and mitigate risks to children, but the company failed to do so.
'This failure means that Reddit may be using children's data unlawfully and exposing them to inappropriate and harmful content,' the ICO said in a statement.
In setting the fine against Reddit, the ICO took into account the number of children affected by the violations, the extent of the harm they could cause, the duration of the violations, and Reddit's global revenue.
Regarding age verification systems for online services, the ICO stated, 'Age assurance tools act as guardrails to prevent children from accessing online services that they should not be using and help platforms tailor their online experiences accordingly. These tools are part of our approach to mitigating the data risks children face online and supporting children's compliance with the Code.'
Regarding the ICO's fine, Reddit told The Register, 'Reddit cares deeply about the privacy and safety of its users, and therefore does not require users, regardless of age, to share personal information. The ICO's request to collect more personal information about UK users is counterintuitive and inconsistent with our strong belief in users' online privacy and safety. We intend to appeal the ICO's decision.'
Related Posts:
in Web Service, Posted by logu_ii