Amid TikTok scrutiny, how effective are parental curbs on social media?
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Loading... - Brenda Lee
- 31 Mar 2023
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A 2021 survey of parents in Singapore found 36 per cent of their children use TikTok, which has an estimated 1.8 million users here. PHOTO: ST FILE
The issue of protecting young users of social media apps against potentially harmful content has been thrown into the spotlight as TikTok faces intense scrutiny in the United States over concerns about data privacy and online harm. Most social media platforms in Singapore are designed for users aged 13 years and above, but none has foolproof measures to stop underage users from lying about their age when they register for accounts. Most platforms do not have measures to verify a user’s age beyond simply asking for a declaration.
A 2021 survey in Singapore of parents of children between seven and 16 years old by Milieu Insight found that half of their children used Instagram and Facebook. It also found that 36 per cent of the children used TikTok, which has an estimated two million users in Singapore. Such surveys show that many children are using the app despite being under the age of 13. Between the first and third quarter of 2022, some 60 million suspected underage accounts were removed by TikTok, it said.
The chief executive of TikTok, Singaporean Chew Shou Zi, was grilled in the United States Congress on March 23 as lawmakers sought to ban the short-form video app which has amassed at least 150 million users in the US and more than one billion users globally. In Congress, US lawmakers questioned the platform’s content moderation policies and showed a collection of TikTok videos that appeared to glorify suicide and self-harm. Mr Chew said TikTok takes a serious view on such content, and later added that his children do not use the app. The Straits Times outlines the checks in place on the app and other social media platforms, and the controls available to parents to protect young users. Read More…
