Tiktok users under 18 years old may find some “groundbreaking” changes in the application next time they login.
The Chinese-based lip-synching application, which has a lower age limit of 13, said users under 16 would no longer be able to receive comments from strangers, have their videos used for “duets” or mark their posts as available to be downloaded, read a news report published in the Guardian.
As per the new changes, accounts for those who are 18 or under will now be made private instead of public. The company is also changing the default settings across the app for users under 18.
Unless they actively change the settings, 16 and 17-year-olds will also have their videos made unavailable for download, and only friends will be able to record duets, the report highlighted.
In TikTok’s recent statement, the app explained that it has changed the policy as a precautionary measure so that children can safely use the platform and parents’ concerns can also be allayed.
Children who are 15 years old or younger will no longer be able to use the do-it-yourself feature, while children between the ages of 16 and 18 will have access to the popular feature of the application.
The company has stated that the age will be determined on the date of birth entered at the time of account creation. The banned accounts will be notified via notification.
The restrictions on the widely-used application will affect tens of millions of TikTok’s young user base.
