TikTok Under Investigation Over Child Sexual Abuse Content: Report

Two federal agencies are reportedly investigating TikTok over its moderation of content depicting child sexual abuse.

The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice have both launched reviews into how such content spreads on the Culver City-based video-sharing app, the Financial Times reported on Friday. Homeland Security is scrutinizing how TikTok handles the material, while the DOJ is investigating how predators may be exploiting a specific privacy feature on the platform.

TikTok, which is owned by Chinese tech firm ByteDance, has become the world’s most popular website—with over 1 billion monthly active users—in large part by appealing to a younger Gen Z audience. But that appeal has also left it vulnerable as a target for predators; Homeland Security official Erin Burke, who leads the child exploitation investigations unit in the department’s cyber crime division, told the FT that TikTok is the “platform of choice” for those targeting children.

According to the FT, child safety groups have reported illegal content being shared through private, password-protected TikTok accounts. Such videos are often uploaded through the app’s “Only Me” feature, where they’re only visible to those logged into a given account.

In response, TikTok told the FT that it has “zero tolerance” for such material, and claimed to remove the vast majority of content that violates its minor safety policies before any users see it. The company employs more than 10,000 human content moderators worldwide.

Questions over TikTok’s ability to protect its young user base have ramped up this year. Last month saw California lawmakers propose a bill that would allow parents to sue social media companies, including TikTok, for addicting children to their apps. Additionally, a group of state attorneys general are investigating TikTok over whether its platform harms children and adolescents.