TikTok Rolls Out Improved Safety Measures for Teens

TikTok’s rolling out some new safety tools for young users, including updated in-app resources for parents, improved advice guides, and a new TV campaign that highlights its safety features.

First off, TikTok’s partnered with The Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI) to develop a new “Digital Safety Partnership” agreement for Families, which is an actual contract-style document that can help parents to establish clear boundaries and parameters for social media use.

The main aim of this approach is to help get the conversation started between parents and teens, in order to highlight the potential dangers of online exposure. TikTok says that the intention is to then “set positive digital boundaries together” via these agreements.

As per TikTok:

“In addition to FOSI, we consulted members of our Content Advisory Council, Youth Council, and parent TikTok creators to ensure we're considering the needs of those the agreement is intended to help. To help caregivers learn about this and other digital parenting tips, we'll work with FOSI to raise awareness of resources available to families, supported by free advertising space on TikTok.”

It may seem a little heavy-handed to implement an actual contract to commit to web safety measures, but conceptually, it makes a lot of sense, in sparking that initial discussion around setting clear parameters. It’ll also give parents a fall-back to limit disputes, and could help to keep youngsters focused on the potential risks.

You can download the Digital Safety Partnership template document here.

TikTok’s also launching refreshed editions of its Guardian's Guide and Teen Safety Center, in order to help families make better use of its various tools and controls.

“Our Teen Safety Center has been updated with advice and feedback from our global Youth Council, where teens told us they wanted to see more visual content, interactive features, like quizzes, and more information about how blocking and reporting works.”

The updated safety center (shown in the image above) now includes more of these interactive, engaging elements, to help encourage expanded use.

Finally, TikTok’s launching a new TV campaign which highlights its various safety tools.

It’s interesting to see how TikTok is looking to incorporate feedback from its recently established Youth Council to improve its approach, with actual young users being consulted on what works best for them, and how they can better engage with safety elements.

That could lead to better outcomes for all, and these updates do seem like a step in the right direction, and in some ways, a fresh perspective.

You can read more about TikTok’s latest safety updates here.