MAKE TIKTOK AN 18+ APP!!

TikTok started out as an app for creating, sharing and discovering short videos. The app was initially used by young people as an outlet to express themselves through singing, dancing, comedy, and lip-syncing, and allows users to create videos but in 2019 TikTok bought in the option of sending gifts to creators, then introduced the weekly ranking competition and from then campaigns. As a result, it involved people spending there own money and unfortunately with that brought financial manipulation. Consequently, many people have been love bombed and manipulated in to spending extortionate amounts of money which has resulted in people loosing their home, getting into debts, leading to cases of suicide amongst other mental health illnesses. 

Ever since TikTok has given  people the option to make money on the app we have seen a rise in convicted offenders of some of the heinous crimes having access to the platform  and using it to their advantage by preying  on vulnerable victims. 

A notable example, would be an account user name which goes by the name of "Ms Cooper" who's real Identity is Steven Loveday, who also goes by the name of Holly stanley, who has been convicted off these charges:

One count of voyeurism
One count of possession of indecent images of children
One count of prohibited images of children
One count of arranging or facilitating the commission of a child sexual offence

This is just one example of many who are using the platform and gaining from it. 

A more recent case involving Tik Tok is the case of Anthony Q Lion, who was a singer on Tik Tok, he gained a large following over a short time by performing on live streams for thousands of people. He posed as a musician who wanted to make the platform a more positive place especially for vulnerable people especially children as he sang songs from the Children’s Disney film The Lion King. This man was also being gifted immensely by his viewers. However it later became apparent that he was in fact on bail for a Rape charge. It was then reported that he had been found guilty of this crime. However what was more disturbing was that this man had been live streaming on this platform whilst using it to inbox & communicate with young women to meet up with him. 
This was a case that shocked the consumers of the app, as none of this man’s criminal history was known to them. The image he portrayed was that of a young musician trying to make a difference. In doing this he was profiting financially whilst deceiving the public. Although he was found guilty of the rape charge, the possibility that he could of have committed the same crime or worst to another victim was very probable. 

On a daily basis we are seeing live streams holding hate lives or talking on subjects that are very triggering & not suitable for vulnerable  people especially children as young as 13 years old. 
People who are not live streamers but merely gifting creators are committing suicide due to reasons linked to the platform and gifting, and our concerns are for the younger generation who are bcomitn victims of child exploitation and online grooming. 

The app is currently a 13+ app which isn’t sufficient enough to protect our children as it’s very difficult to monitor the way creators use this platform which young children are being manipulated into using, and at times even using their parents bank details to gift their favourite creators. 

Subsequently, this app will not only allow predators and convicted criminals of heinous crimes the playground to target young children it will also damage the mental health health of the vulnerable people whose intentions are to use this app to improve their mental health or merely take a break from the struggles of their own lives. Although there are positive creators on this app. It is over shadowed by a large number of users who have ulterior motives in using this app, the most prevalent one being targeting minors, grooming them & exposing them to child exploitation. Which goes unnoticed by Tik Tok because of the financial element off the app. 
Furthermore, we have the Tik atom guidelines that are put in place to attempt to protect vulnerable users however there is an overwhelming consensus that tik Tok fails to do this on most occasions. Namely, when users are live streaming and adding minors to the multi guest boxes to communicate with them in a way that evidently falls into the realm of child exploitation and grooming. However, the live stream regardless of how many people initiate reports it results in no violations according the guidelines. The purpose of reporting lives & users is to provide a safer platform for the vulnerable and children however this function is not being implemented or enforced accordingly. 
When these minors are interacting with older people in live stream’s inappropriately it does not end there. Unfortunately these predators are merely using Tik Tok as a way of finding these children then moving the conversation and interaction onto other platforms such as snap chat or even WhatsApp. However this all starts from Tik Tok as it’s an app for 13+  which means it’s the breeding ground for these questionable people to have access to children by manipulating them and grooming them to later commit  crimes against children without the knowledge of their parents. 

We have also witnessed people preforming & demonstrating  sexual acts on live streams however, the live stream is not being stopped or banned by Tik Tok despite all the reports being made by viewers. 

An example of a creator who has been on the news feed of Tik Tok (@For You Page’) for the exact sexual acts on his live stream is ‘Sobriety Jack’. This creator has a large following consisting mainly of young children. He used his platform to perform sexual acts with food and items such as remote control devices. This was triggering and a prime example of how consumers of this app  have been failed by Tik Tok. It is clearly against the guidelines to such acts on a live stream however the reports that were made returned to be no violations which resulted in Jack continuing his live stream with over 2K viewers exposing young children to his sexual content on an app which is currently has a age restriction of 13+ years. The repercussions of this was for the  parents of the children who unfortunately watched Jack on his live stream being contacted by their schools because the children we’re discussing with their peers. This was disturbing & affected the mental health of not only the children but also the parents whom children aren’t even aware of Tik Tok or perhaps don’t allow their children to use it but have been unable to protect their children because the schools are informing them of the discussions being had during school hours. Which clearly is unacceptable however nothing was done by Tik Tok to rectify this  issue. Moreover, the guidelines still remain and it is unclear as to how Tik Tok as a cooperation will aim to put better measures in place to prevent this type of abuse and content being streamed online. 

Tik Tok as a social media platform has failed to promote the safety of young children and the vulnerable. Although there have been many reports being made to Tik Tok majority of these return with no violations. The government has a duty to protect young children from bei by targeted online and reduce the cases of child exploitation and online grooming however platforms such as Tik Tok has become the breeding grounds for predators to exploit children with no repercussions or victimise the vulnerable as a way of financially grooming them to gift extortionate gifts costing some of them their homes and livelihoods. 
We have seen videos go viral on Tik Tok of victims who have sadly committed suicide due to the abuse they have suffered from creators online. Yet the guidelines still remain the same, where the age restriction is as low as 13 years old. This is absurd and should not apply in the UK as we also have laws against children purchasing alcohol and tobacco products to 18 years old. 
We also have laws that prevent children from accessing and watching sexual content online however on Tik Tok because it is a 13+ app, children are allowed to access and watch creators performing sexual acts and exposing themselves in a comprising manner. 
Therefore I am starting this petition, to urge you to take action and address this issue. Your support will be crucial in bringing about change and ensuring that Tik Tok has a 18+ age restriction in order to ensure that children and the vulnerable are being treated fairly and with dignity.

We, the public and consumers , believe that Tik Tok must have a age restriction limit of 18+. It would go a long way towards addressing this issue and improving the lives of those affected by it. We ask that you consider our request and take immediate action to make a
positive change.