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Kids & Family

Tech Talk Tuesdays: What Parents Should Know About TikTok

We put together a list of things parents need to know about the app TikTok.

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Milford Prevention Council (MPC), Community Contributor
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With more information coming to light about the most recent TikTok “Skullbreaker” challenge, we put together a list of things parents need to know about the app TikTok, care of child therapist, Susan Stutzman.

TikTok surpassed Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat & YouTube in downloads in 2019. TikTok is a music video-based social media app that allows users to record themselves lip-syncing to popular songs, add effects, and share them with other users (think Snapchat with music).

So here are five things parents need to know about TikTok:

1. Hashtag Challenges are abound:

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As with any social media platform, there is always suggestive content mixed into the bag. With TikTok being mostly based on music and video, profanity and suggestive clothing/dancing are the most obvious sources of adult content. But the app also encourages some themes that are much more mature than their 16+ rating would suggest

Here’s a sneak peek at some of the most idiotic (and dangerous) TikToc challenges out there.

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2. Strangers can send Private Messages:

If your child’s account is public, they may be receiving messages from complete strangers. Talking with your child about interacting with strangers, especially online, is becoming more and more important. Remind your child that if they do not know them in real life, they should not be talking to them

3. TikTok is extremely popular:

In the first quarter of 2018 it was downloaded 45.8 million times, to become the number one most downloaded app. While the main user demographic is located in China, it has been gaining traction in the United States over the last year.

4. On the upside? there is a ‘digital wellbeing’ setting:

One of the more admirable functions in the app is the ability to turn on the ‘digital wellbeing’ setting. Once turned on, this setting will set time limits on app use, which can help your child moderate the time they spend on their phone. This setting also allows a parent to put restrictions on their child’s account. This will block videos that have been flagged as inappropriate. An important point to remember, however, is that not all inappropriate material is flagged properly and things frequently slip through the cracks.


5. TikTok collects user data:

While this is nothing new and all social-media apps participate in this practice, it is worth a reminder for parents. This is a quote directly from TikTok’s page on privacy- “We share your data with our third-party service providers we rely on to help provide you with the Platform. These providers include cloud storage providers and other IT service providers. We also share your information with our business partners, advertisers, analytics and search engine providers…”

Remember to have ongoing open conversations with your kids about the content they’re consuming when on TikTok and encourage them to come to you when/if they’re seeing content that is harmful or inappropriate.

If you feel unsure of how to start a conversation on internet safety with your kids and where to start the discussion, contact us at info@milfordprevention.org We are here to help!

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