TikTok Leadership Criticized Over Child Safety Concerns

TikTok employees have repeatedly expressed serious concerns about child safety on the app. They warned of minors appearing in explicit content, which could be accessed and paid for by viewers, pointing to potential financial crimes. Employees also noted that underage users circumvented age restrictions and blocked parental oversight.

Internal frustrations mounted as these issues persisted. Depositions filed in federal court reveal that employees felt TikTok’s leadership was slow to respond. As the app’s popularity surged among children since 2018, concerns about sexual exploitation and exposure to self-harm content escalated.

According to court records, TikTok avoided conducting user age surveys to prevent mandatory disclosures to the Federal Trade Commission. Despite repeated requests, TikTok did not comment on these issues but referred NPR to their public policies. TikTok is also embroiled in litigation over claims that its platform is harmful to minors. The lawsuits include a notable trial where a jury found Meta and YouTube guilty of creating addictive platforms.

In May, TikTok settled a lawsuit with a Kentucky school district for $8 million over youth mental health concerns. Later, TikTok agreed to a $100 million settlement with Alabama over addictive content allegations. The employee testimonies have not yet been presented in these court cases.

“I have been fighting about fixing this for months,” TikTok safety executive Reagen Maher said in her testimony.

Maher attempted to address the rise of inappropriate content involving children. She highlighted the issue of minors being groomed for inappropriate activities on TikTok Live. Internal investigations revealed that in January 2022 alone, there were over 112,000 TikTok Live videos involving minors aged 13 to 15.

Silvija Krupena from RedCompass Labs emphasized the criminal implications for companies profiting from child exploitation. Platforms are required to report such activity to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Revenue linked to such offenses could be deemed criminal proceeds, raising money laundering concerns. Krupena noted that management awareness of issues impacts potential liability.

TikTok has addressed some safety concerns with features limiting minors’ access to certain tools. However, loopholes allowed underage users to access adult content through Google or other social media accounts.

The app’s popularity among youth is undeniable. By 2025, 68% of U.S. teens aged 13 to 17 used TikTok according to the Pew Research Center. After merging with Musical.ly in 2018, the platform quickly expanded. Yet, concerns about underage users have lingered.

Employees warned that TikTok’s demographic surveys could expose violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. This led to avoidance of questions that could imply the presence of users under 13.

TikTok’s “family pairing” feature, meant to help parents oversee use, faced criticism for allowing teens to bypass restrictions. Internal chats highlighted frustrations, with some noting it rendered the feature almost ineffective.

Employees were also worried about “rabbit holes,” where users, including minors, were continuously exposed to harmful content like self-harm or suicide. Former safety head Eric Han reported that repeated exposure to certain content could encourage harmful behavior among teens.

A report by Han emphasized the danger, stating, “Social media is inherently dangerous, and all minors are at risk.” Despite this acknowledgment, TikTok failed to directly warn parents about these dangers.