TikTok Launches AMBER Alerts to US Users

TikTok has announced an expanded launch of its AMBER Alerts system in the U.S., which will highlight missing kids in your local area within the app.

As you can see in this example, with TikTok’s AMBER Alerts, users will be shown details of the missing child within their main feed, helping to highlight cases, and broaden awareness of such cases.

As explained by TikTok:

“Today we're announcing the launch of AMBER Alerts on TikTok with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). This brings critical, time-sensitive information directly to people's For You feeds to raise awareness of missing children and leverage the power of the US TikTok community to help reunite them with their families.”

The expanded coverage of such cases will help to raise awareness, and get more information to the public.

Which, based on an initial test of the process last year, where TikTok displayed AMBER alerts to users in Texas, could be significant:

“From August to December 2024, AMBER Alerts on TikTok were viewed over 20 million times and contributed to 2.5 million visits to NCMEC's website. Now, we're expanding these alerts to more than 170 million Americans, so when an AMBER Alert is issued, we'll show the alert in the For You feed of those within the area.”

It’s a good initiative, using TikTok’s huge reach to broaden response, and ensure greater exposure, especially among younger audiences. Meta also displays AMBER Alerts across its apps, and the combined reach of Facebook, IG, and TikTok could be a big help in finding lost kids fast.

In addition to this, TikTok’s also donating advertising credits to help further amplify NCMEC's messaging, via its official TikTok account.

The expanded reach and engagement on TikTok could be a big benefit in this aspect, and with time being a critical consideration in locating missing kids, this, again, is an important and valuable project.