Susan McLean, a cyber cop, warns parents to keep their children safe from TikTok. It is up to parents to guide their children and teach them what and how to share on the internet.
TikTok is a pedophile magnet for children
Each app has a different minimum age. For instance, everyone who is over the age of 13 can use TikTok. TikTik is a social media similar to Snapchat. You can post short videos and share them online, just like Facebook posts.
Nevertheless, it is considered that the age of 13 is very low because TikTok is a dependent app. It offers personal videos, which all pedophiles love to watch. Even though we should be very cautious about our safety, it is considered that many of TikTok’s users are not old enough to sign a legal contract. The app does nothing during the sign-up process to check, which means that a large number of children join under the required age. In addition, although a user sets his account to private, TikTok allows everybody to view the shared content on the private account.
However, when a child decided to have a public account, they are inviting people to follow him and send him messages.
Even though TikTok is very similar to Snapchat, it became one of the most popular networks in the world. It is the latest craze with over 1.5 billion downloads worldwide. The app allows sharing of videos, which is not only appealing to children, but also to pedophiles.
According to an investigation carried out in the United Kingdom, TikTok represents the worst online experience for parents when it comes to online apps. Pedophiles groom children and send them explicit messages.
TikTok’s actions are in favor of the pedophile
Not only TikTok’s terms of use are in favor of the pedophile, but it appears that its moderators also approve of their actions. Recently, on a video posted by a 9-year-old child appeared explicit comments. As soon as the comments were reported, they were removed within 24 hours.
Even though TikTok’s terms of use do not allow the use of explicit messages, they still wait to be reported to remove them and do not take any legal actions against the offenders. Moreover, it allows children’s videos to be promoted to users that are interested in accounts like theirs. Pedophiles pretend to be children and look for children’s videos. Then, they target somebody, follow him, and try to trap him. The results can be devastating.
Keep your children safe from TikTok
TikTok is not an app for children. Talk to your children and explain the dangers of sharing personal information online. They should understand that they should never tell their age, and give their address or mobile number to anyone.
The government announced its plans to create a new enforceable ‘Duty of Care’ fined by stiff penalties, even including criminal penalties. Moreover, all internet businesses, like TikTok, were given an opportunity to remove their act and make the acceptable to the norms.
