UK Regulator Reportedly Investigating Snapchat Over Underage Users

The United Kingdom’s data protection regulator is reportedly looking into whether Snap taking sufficient measures to keep users under 13 years old off its social media platform.

A new report from Reuters states that the country’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is gathering information to determine whether the company —which operates Snapchat, one of the most popular social media apps in the UK— may have violated its rules around protecting children’s data online. While gathering information doesn’t mean that an investigation into Snap is incoming, it is generally one of the first steps the ICO can take, according to the outlet. 

When reached for comment on whether it was investigating Snap on Tuesday, a spokesperson for the ICO didn’t address whether the regulator was examining the company over its handling of underage users on its platform.

“We are continuing to monitor and assess the approaches that Snap and other social media platforms are taking to ensure that their services are only accessed by users within the age ranges for which they’re designed, as well as their broader compliance with the ICO’s Children’s code,” the spokesperson said.

Snap did not comment on a possible investigation from the ICO in a response to The Messenger on Tuesday, but stated that it is continually working to keep children under 13 off its platform.

"We take our obligations to keep under 13s off of Snapchat seriously. Every month, in the UK, we block or delete tens of thousands of attempts from underage users to create a Snapchat account," a Snap spokesperson said. "This is an industry wide-challenge and we are working collaboratively with the government, regulators and other tech companies to find industry-wide solutions.”

The social media platform came under fire in March after Reuters reported that during the period between April 2021 and 2022, it had only removed about 60 accounts suspected of belonging to underage users in the UK every month, accounting for about 700 overall. TikTok, in comparison, removed 180,000 per month in that same period — totaling more than two million.

At the time, the company said the figures didn’t represent the scale of its efforts to keep kids under 13 off Snapchat.