THE TROUBLE WITH TIKTOK – BeSecureOnline.co.uk

<figure><img alt="Does tiktok control content, does tiktok moderate content" class="img-responsive" src="/Portals/0/tk4.png" title="Does tiktok control content, does tiktok moderate content" />
<figcaption>TikTok isn't the greatest place for kids. Set up privacy up on your kid's account</figcaption>
</figure>

Updated May 2021; In early 2020 pre COVID19, some British newspapers ran some articles about TikTok, its success, and its potential danger to kids. They said TikTok is completely unfit for kids. Much of what is said is true for Snapchat as well, but they say there is no remedy or realistic means of contacting TikTok. Snapchat and TikTok are the two most popular social media apps with kids. Snapchat is feared because of its secrecy, and TikTok for its enormous number of users, most of them gained since 2018.

Just before the COVID19 outbreak, TikTok opened a European office in Dublin to provide a European base and moderate content but it is known to not really working yet as of October 2020. In May 2021, TikTok report 1200 people in the Dublin office, with 2,000 more coming in. TikTok is recruiting in London.

<h4>Formerly Musical.ly, TikTok struggles to keep up</h4>

TikTok has grown hugely since its former life as Musical.ly. Now known as TikTok. It is owned by the Chinese company Bytedance. The EU and American Government, suspect that the Chinese Government is heavily involved with TikTok and collecting information on US & European users. Learn more on TikTok dangers in one of our <a href="https://www.besecureonline.co.uk/Expert-Speakers/Internet-Safety-Talks-for-Kids" target="_blank">Online safety Talks</a>.

People want TikTok to respond to complaints and handling requests more compassionately. TikTok needs to step up its game in terms of defending its users. Bans are issued to users who fail to follow community guidelines (the social media description for rules) but for short periods like a week. It would be unfair to pick on TikTok alone as Snapchat and Instagram just as culpable especially Snapchat. As of May 2021, TikTok has several thousand people working in the new Dublin based European office.

Instagram is the best of the three here. Instagram thinks of itself as the happiness portal. Last year Instagram following the Molly Russell case said they would moderate 'self-harm' contact and compress 'likes' everywhere to reduce social market viral 'like-hunting' improving internet safety.

<h3>TikTok by the Numbers</h3>

<ul>
<li>1.5 bl downloads</li>
<li>5 million UK users</li>
<li>42% between 16-24 yrs of age</li>
<li>6% of 11-17 years of age engaged in Sexting activity on TikTok</li>
<li>1 in 5 kids being groomed are under 12 years of age</li>
<li>200,000 kids have been groomed for groomed on social media for sexual purposes</li>
<li>TikTok fined $7ml for illegally collecting kids data on TikTok</li>
</ul>

<figure><img alt="Tiktok sexual content, Tiktok adult rated content, not suited for children " class="img-responsive" src="/Portals/0/tiktok_comments.png" title="Tiktok sexual content, Tiktok adult rated content, not suited for children " />
<figcaption>Kids and older people make sexual remarks in response to TikTok Video. This is normal.</figcaption>
</figure>

<h3> 
Make Kids aware of the issues, threats to their safety.</h3>

We think; 
Schools, Parents, Teachers should make sure that:  
 
1. Kids need to be aware of online safety issues so vital to their well-being on TikTok. Especially given the poor level of support provided by the company itself.  
 
2. Use Privacy settings to protect. An 11-year-old with 200 followers, with a proxy fake name, and no profile picture won't want to change.  Start by asking him to switch to 'private' from 'Everyone'. Won't be easy persuading him. However, it is better to be safe than sorry, private but less popular.

<h4>How to set up TikTok</h4>

<h5>Take control of TikTok – change these settings now</h5>

Go private: 
Goto Settings > Privacy and Safety Goto – Discoverability heading at the top.

TikTok recommends your page to lots of other users to improve video circulation. Switch the setting off and the account will no longer be recommended to other users.

<h4>Getting rid of Strangers</h4>

In Privacy and Safety > Safety, you can prevent other users from seeing your posts, stories. Settings are on ‘Everyone’ by default but can be changed to Friends or Off.

Switch off ‘Comments, Duets, Reacts, users seeing which videos you've liked, and also messages. 
 
'A stranger is a friend you haven't met yet.' Comedian Billy Connolly.

<h4>Restricted Mode on:</h4>

Restricted Mode tries to limit age-inappropriate content from appearing for children.

It's not perfect and works through using computer-scanning systems – so some dodgy content will inevitably be missed. 
Set a passcode to prevent your child from changing this setting themselves later on.

<h3>Do this in Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Screen Time Management. 
<img alt="digital wellbeing, texting, messages for kids" class="img-responsive" src="/Portals/0/IMG_3896-e1581526566330.png" title="digital wellbeing, texting, messages for kids" /></h3>

Teenagers and young Adult react (or think they need to react quickly to messages, posts, stories) to online messaging they bypass their critical thinking faculties in their rush to be funny or simply be the first to react.

We want to make sure parents are aware of the risks their kids are being exposed to, and what they can do to better protect them.

They want TikTok to better moderate its content so that it’s not being left to kids to protect themselves online

We are shining a light on the dangerous side of the app and how its lax security and moderation has allowed it to become a magnet for <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/10864644/tiktok-paedos-grooming-kids/">paedophiles</a>, <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/tech/11035666/tiktok-bullies-bootcamp-swearing/">profanity</a>, crime, violence and extremism.

But while many of the young users might treat the videos as a joke, gruesome crimes have arisen from teens using social media to pretend they are real-life gangsters.

<h4>TikTok need to do more in Europe</h4>

Last year Facebook agreed with the UK Government to step up efforts to moderate content online. Instagram agreed to curate content following the campaign of the late <a href="https://besecureonline.co.uk/Blog/entryid/61/internet-safety-win-over-instagram">Holly Russell's</a> father.  Explosive growth in the past two years has caught up with TokTok, they need to start moderating content and intervene with videos that do NOT meet community standards to encourage users into ultra profane behaviour, crime, explicit sexual content, hateful content or self-harm (suicide)

<h4><img alt="tiktok privacy settings, tiktok profile settings for kids" class="img-responsive" src="/Portals/0/AA_Mandeep/TIKTOK/TikTok_Privacy_jpg.jpg?ver=HdhlQmnUbZHic0q8t5u6qA%3d%3d" title="tiktok privacy settings, tiktok profile settings for kids" /> 
Switching on Privacy Settings</h4>

Taking control of TikTok – change these settings now

<ul>
<li>Do the following immediately…Go private:</li>
<li>Go to Settings > Privacy and Safety and find Discoverability heading at the top.</li>
<li>Under that, there is a setting called Private Account. Toggle this on.</li>
<li>TikTok recommends your page to lots of other users to improve video circulation.</li>
<li>Switch the setting off. </li>
</ul>

Shut out weirdos & Perverts 
In Privacy and Safety > Safety, you can prevent other users from interacting with you. 
Most of the settings are on Everyone by default but can be changed to Friends or Off. 
You can prevent interactions on comments, Duets, Reacts, users seeing which videos you've liked, and also messages.

<h4>Restricted Mode- Switch it on!</h4>

Restricted Mode tries to limit age-inappropriate content from appearing for children. 
It's not perfect and works through using computer-scanning systems – so some dodgy content will inevitably slip through.  It's also possible to set a passcode to prevent your child from changing this setting later on.

You'll find this in Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Screen Time Management. 
 
This is really the only setting a kid should be using.