TikTok Enhances Parental Oversight of Content Viewed by Teens

TikTok, which is owned by China’s ByteDance, has been under scrutiny in the US and other countries due to its large number of young users and inappropriate content. In response, the company has announced that it will provide parents with more control over their teenagers’ viewing habits. The “Family Pairing” feature will now include content filtering controls that allow parents to block videos containing certain words or hashtags while still allowing their children to use the app.

TikTok introduced Family Pairing in 2020 as a way to let parents link directly to their children’s accounts and then remotely disable direct messages, set time limits and enable “restricted content” mode. And last year, it added a tool that automatically filters out videos with words or hashtags that users might not want to see in their For You or Following feeds.

The new controls essentially combine the two features, allowing parents to remotely filter videos from their children’s accounts on the For You or Followed pages using specific words or hashtags. “We’re bringing this [content filtering] tool to Family Pairing to allow caregivers to help reduce the likelihood of a teen viewing content they may find disturbing,” TikTok wrote.

At the same time, children will be alerted to the filters their parents have chosen and can choose to opt out, the company told Sky News. “Teenagers can view keywords added by their caregivers by default, and we believe this transparency can also help spark conversations about online boundaries and safety,” the company wrote. “We also wanted to make sure we respected the right of young people to participate.”

Meanwhile, TikTok announced the formation of a global youth council later this year. The goal, it says, is to “listen to the experiences of those who directly use our platform and be in a better position to make changes to create the safest possible experience for our community.”

TikTok has been criticized for exposing children to videos of self-harm, eating disorders and other inappropriate content, often disguised with slightly modified hashtags designed to bypass moderation. The company faces new content regulations in the U.K. through the Online Safety Bill, and U.S. lawmakers are working on the Kids Online Safety Act, which would force social media companies like TikTok to increase online safeguards for children. TikTok was recently banned in Montana, but the company is suing the state on the grounds that the ban violates the First Amendment and other laws.