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A recent report by a human rights campaign group has revealed that TikTok’s algorithm is recommending inappropriate and highly sexualized content to children’s accounts. The researchers conducted an experiment where they created fake child accounts with safety settings activated, yet still received sexually explicit search suggestions. These search terms led to sexualized material, including videos of explicit sexual acts.
The campaigners behind the report, Global Witness, set up four accounts on TikTok pretending to be 13-year-olds in late July and early August. Despite turning on the platform’s “restricted mode”, which is meant to prevent users from seeing sexually suggestive content, the investigators still encountered overtly sexualized search terms being recommended within the app. This led to content featuring women simulating sexual acts in various explicit ways.
After discovering the issue, Global Witness informed TikTok, which claimed to have taken immediate action to address the problem. Despite this, further research in late July and August revealed that the app was still recommending sexual content. TikTok maintains that it has numerous safety features in place to protect teenagers and removes the majority of videos that violate its guidelines before they are viewed.
The findings of this report come after the implementation of the Children’s Codes under the Online Safety Act, which legally obligates platforms to protect children online. These codes require platforms to use effective age verification measures to prevent children from accessing pornography and to modify their algorithms to block harmful content promoting self-harm, suicide, or eating disorders. Global Witness advocates for stronger regulatory actions to safeguard children’s online experiences and ensure their protection from inappropriate content.
As researchers delved deeper into the issue, they observed how other users reacted to the sexualized search terms they were being presented with on TikTok. Some users expressed confusion and concern over the recommendations, highlighting the need for increased vigilance and regulation to create a safer online environment for children
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