Reddit has been slapped with an enormous fine for failing to protect children.
Reddit has been hit with a £14.47 million fine after the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) ruled that the platform failed to safeguard children’s personal data and allowed under‑13s to access the site without proper age checks.
The ICO found that Reddit did not use any robust age‑assurance tools, instead relying on users to self‑declare their age — a system regulators said was “easy to bypass” and left children vulnerable to inappropriate or harmful content.
Investigators also concluded that Reddit had no lawful basis for processing data belonging to under‑13s and failed to carry out a required child‑safety risk assessment until after January 2025.
The penalty marks the largest children’s‑privacy fine the ICO has ever issued, underscoring growing regulatory pressure on major platforms to tighten protections for young users.
Reddit has said it intends to appeal the decision.
A spokesperson for the company said: “Reddit doesn’t require users to share information about their identities, regardless of age, because we are deeply committed to their privacy and safety.
“The ICO’s insistence that we collect more private information on every UK user is counterintuitive and at odds with our strong belief in our users’ online privacy and safety.
“We intend to appeal the ICO’s decision.”
Reddit fined £14 million by UK watchdog for failing to protect children’s data
