Venezuela’s Supreme Court Fines Tiktok $10 Million for Dangerous Viral Challenges
TikTok logo. Photo: VCG.
The social media corporation TikTok will have to pay a $10 million fine to the Venezuelan National Telecommunications Commission (Conatel) for “its negligence in controlling content and viral challenges” that encourage children and teenagers to cause harm to themselves. This ruling was declared by the Constitutional Chamber of the Venezuelan Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) on Monday, December 30.
The decision, read by the president of the Constitutional Chamber of the TSJ, magistrate Tania D’Amelio, establishes that TikTok has an eight-day period to pay the fine. If the deadline is not met, “the Constitutional Chamber of the TSJ may take the measures it deems pertinent to this case.”
According to the ruling, this money must be paid to Conatel, which will create a fund to care for the families and victims of the so-called viral challenges.
“This fund will be used to compensate for psychological, emotional, and physical damages suffered by users, especially if they are children and adolescents,” says the text read by Justice D’Amelio.
The Supreme Court also ordered TikTok to set up an office within Venezuelan territory “so that its operation can be supervised and controlled in accordance with our legal system.”
The TSJ also ordered the expansion of a multidisciplinary technical task force, which will include the relatives of those affected by the social media platform’s viral challenges. The task force will aim “to quantify the damages in this case, which include tragic and fatal consequences for the victims.”
It is worth noting that the TSJ’s decision comes after state and civil society organizations filed an appeal for protection before Venezuela’s highest court due to the spread of viral challenges on TikTok causing injuries and fatalities in the country.
According to Venezuela’s Judiciary, three minors died in October and November after having participated in viral challenges allegedly seen on TikTok related to the ingestion of a controlled anxiolytic medication. Other viral challenges associated with the consumption of poisonous substances have also been reported, leaving 94 kids intoxicated in a school in Barinas state and 85 in Portuguesa state.
On November 25, President Nicolás Maduro reported receiving a letter from the US-based corporation after giving it 72 hours to eliminate the viral challenges from its platform on November 19.
(Alba Ciudad) by Ana PerdigĂłn, with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SF
