TikTok has made automatic changes to all those profiles that belong to users under 16 years of age. In this way they seek to improve your security and privacy. So we are going to tell you everything that you can no longer do on TikTok if you are under 16 years old.
Privacy and security on TikTok, a sensitive issue
Social networks are the favorite habitat of many teenagers and not so teenagers today. There are those who invest a lot of time in them creating content and, above all, consuming what other users publish. For it is logical that each time we look with more interest what they do and what measures they apply with those profiles that belong to minors.
TikTok is aware that a large percentage of its users are minors. Just as they also know that many parents and guardians are concerned about the safety and privacy of the minors in their care, so any measure or change that helps protect them will always be well received.
The latest developments on the platform have been focused on precisely that, the security and privacy of children under 16 years of age. So if you are a father, mother, guardian or simply a teenager who has not yet turned 16, you are interested in knowing what has changed and what you can and cannot do within TikTok. Maybe you even understand why you may now receive fewer comments or your videos have fewer views.
Everything you can’t do on TikTok if you’re under 16
These changes apply automatically to all profiles whose users are between 13 and 15 years old.
Default private accounts for minors
From now on, user accounts that are under 16 years old become private TikTok accounts. That means that only people who have been accepted as followers will be able to see the videos that are published by that profile.
It is true that this setting can be changed and make the profile public again, but if you only want those who see said content to be people who “know”, then it is better not to do so.
Limited comments
The other important change that TikTok applied to the profiles of those under 16 years old is that they will only be able to receive comments from their friends on the platform. A stranger will not be able to comment on any publication even if the profile and its contents are public.
Thanks to this measure, the possibility of the minor suffering situations of harassment or that they may find unpleasant is eliminated. And if it happens to you, you will know exactly who does it because it will be your “Friends” who will be able to comment, no one else.
TikTok Duo and Paste option
The TikTok Duo option is the one that allows you to use the video posted by another user of the platform to create a new version or make a kind of reaction to it. It’s a very creative option, but it can also be a bit dangerous.
Therefore, now only those who are over 16 years old will be able to use the TikTok duets . But there is more, if the profile belongs to a minor with 16 or 17 years by default the configuration will limit them to “Friends”.
Download limit
The only content that can be downloaded from TikTok will be those that have been created by users over 16 years of age . In addition, by default, 16 and 17 year old user profiles will have this option disabled by default, so if they want to allow it they will have to consciously activate it.
Recommend your account to others
In the same way that restrictions have been applied on functions such as comments or who sees the content of a minor’s account, profiles between 13 and 15 years old will not see their recommended content to other users by default. Again it will be an option that will have to be activated manually if you want.
Necessary changes to TikTok
These changes applied by TikTok in the profiles of those under 16 years of age are to some extent very necessary, because many users are not aware of the risks of being exposed on the internet in a public way.
Enabling default settings that prevent strangers from seeing what is being shared is a wise decision. In addition, they remove specific things, as everything can be changed to public if desired, it is the user himself or whoever manages the account who dedicates if he has enough technological and personal education to know how to deal with every possible situation that could be encountered.
So to sum up, this is all that you will not be able to do with an account for under 16 :
- By default, only your friends will be able to see your posts
- Only your friends will be able to comment on your content again
- Your videos can only be downloaded if you are 16 years old or older and by default only your friends
- Only if you are over 16 years old can you use the Duets function
- User accounts between 13 and 15 years old will not be recommended
Other helps to protect children’s accounts
Along with all these changes, default applications by TikTok, if as a father, mother or legal guardian you want to have extra tools to control the activity of minors on the network, then you can go to the family safety options.
To use this, which are still parental controls, the first thing you have to do is link the child’s account with the TikTok application that you install. These would be the steps:
- Download the TikTok application and create your own account
- Start the app and in the user profile look for the Digital Detox option
- Next, tap on Family Safety Mode
- Select if you are a parent / guardian or youth
- Depending on the selection, an option will appear to scan a QR code or the code itself to link that account
- Create the code to avoid unauthorized changes if they pick up your phone
Ready, from now on you can apply a series of settings such as limiting the time of use, the appearance or not of content that you may think is inappropriate and even everything related to who can see or not content, send and receive messages direct, etc.
