TikTok

Username Your username is initially allocated to you and when you set a new username there is no profanity check so you can set it to as offensive a username as you want. There should be a profanity username check with children under 13 regularly on the platform.

Password The password for TikTok has complexity requirements. It must be 8 characters with a 20 character max, have 1 letter and 1 number and 1 special character. It does allow easily hackable passwords such as Pa55word!

Multi Factor Authentication Two step verification is available but is not enabled by default, which it should be. You can either do the verification via phone number or email.

The only time you can chat on TikTok is if someone is streaming live on TikTok, other than that it is just direct messaging.

Direct messaging on TikTok is only available to registered account holders aged 16 and older. Parents and caregivers of 16 to 18-year-old users can set restrictions on this feature through Family Pairing.
•  Private videos can’t be shared. If the creator of the video changed the video status from public to private after you shared it in a message, the video will be unavailable and you won’t be able to watch it.
•  Content created outside of TikTok can’t be shared in a direct message.
•  You can choose who, if anyone, can send you direct messages in your Privacy settings.
Keep in mind, if you update your direct message setting to No one, you won’t be able to receive direct messages. You can still access your message history in your Inbox, but you can’t receive new direct messages in those message threads.

You can only Direct message someone who is on your friends list.

You can also block someone so they can’t send you direct messages or view your videos on TikTok.

TikTok needs access to your camera and microphone in order to work properly. This might sound logical, since we’re talking about a video app. However, there aren’t any specifications explaining how exactly these permissions are used. Therefore, TikTok could theoretically record conversations and sounds using your microphone, even when you aren’t filming a TikTok video.

According to the TikTok privacy policy, the app collects your location information based on your phone’s SIM card and/or IP address. They also can track your GPS if you give them permission.

TikTok Live is a feature that allows TikTok users to live stream and communicate with their followers in real time. Live videos are also longer than traditional TikTok content, helping you build stronger relationships with your audience.

Everyone can use this feature, but there is one stipulation – you have to be 16 and older. Your account should also have no less than 1,000 followers.

TikTok is rated as 12+ in the app store, and its set for Teen in Google Play. Due to the amount of inappropriate content that your child can be exposed to these are the absolute minimum age ratings that TikTok should be.

If you decide that your children can use TikTok then ensure that the any parental restrictions/controls that you deem appropriate have been applied. Have a plan of action should they come across any inappropriate material or be subject to online abuse.

To become a TikTok user, you must first pass through an age-gate to get you into the right TikTok experience. If you want to create a TikTok account, you must be at least 13 years old. And to give gifts to your favorite creators, 18 years old is necessary. If you’re under 13 years old, you’ll be placed into TikTok for teenager mode that has additional privacy and safety protections designed specifically for this audience.

Although like almost all social media apps, there is no age verification other than putting in your date of birth.

TikTok has denied being hit by a security breach after posts on hacking forums suggested the app’s source code, including account details of potentially billions of users were compromised.

A database with more than two billion entries concerning TikTok and WeChat accounts had been compromised and in possession of a hacking group, according to one forum post.

However, in a statement posted to Twitter, the company said it “found no evidence of a breach,” after investigating the claims. TikTok also stated that the alleged source code made public by the hackers “is completely unrelated to TikTok’s backend source code.”

“TikTok prioritizes the privacy and security of our users’ data. Our security team investigated these claims and found no evidence of a security breach,”

TikTok is hugely popular and as such in terms of safety it suffers from its own success. It has become the home of inappropriate and sometimes downright dangerous challenges which was at one time the reserve of YouTube.

You can enable certain parental control features such as making their account private (as its public by default), enabling restricted mode to reduce the risk of inappropriate content being seen, disable comments and set words that you do not want to appear in their comments so that comments containing those words are blocked, and limit their interactions with other users.

As with most apps of this type the above features have come, not as a result of the company wanting to make users safe from the launch of the product but rather in response to things that have happened on the platform.