Is Tik-Tok Becoming a Bad Platform for Kids? by Chloe

Tik-Tok was originally an app made for kids to express themselves creatively. You could show your stories, your journeys, your feelings, your talents, and your passions. While some people do use these things today to have fun, some use it to shame others. Over some time, Tik-Tok has become an ugly place. This is due to shaming people’s figures, culture, accents, habits, religion, sexuality, etc. It has become a worldwide problem that is beginning to affect kids’ self-image and is supporting the thought of self-endangerment and even suicide. I want to share this side of Tik-Tok that people might not know about because I enjoyed it when the app was innocent and kids were learning how to be themselves.

Keeps info

It has been said by Tik-Tok themselves thatthey keep many sensitive parts of your information. This has become a major safety risk meaning parents need to be aware of what their kids are deciding to put out to the world. Exposing credentials have been discussed by our government and has caused a lot of stress by exploiting our privacy. In the future, our government is thinking about banning the app in the United States to lessen the chance of security risks.Influence on suicideKids are noticing "challenge" relieving around ways to hurt themselves. This issue has become serious and not a laughing matter. Sexual harassment is also common as people can target young subjects. Tik-Tok itself is becoming dangerous with parents not being aware of the content being inappropriate.

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is a big problem as it also causes self-harm to kids’ images. While posting your video, people can say ANYTHING as a comment or “advice”. As there are people in the world who want to encourage creativity and imagination, there are also peoplewilling to discriminate and point out people's art. You can be compared to hurtful things to make you feel bad about yourself. Keeping your account private (if you are a kid) would be the best option to protect yourself from the ugly words that are not held back by people who aren’t afraid to say what’s their thought.

Conclusion

In the end, Tik-Tok itself is not a bad app. I love the way it sends a message to experiment with yourself and to be or be inspired by a role model. The only thing that is making the experience negative is the people using the app. Tik-Tok needs to allow restrictions and have a better grip on safety for the sake of kids around the world that don’t know the dangers of the internet. Make it so it can be an experience that you want people to try and make it safe so the app implores you to show your passions, your loves, and your ideas that make that base for creativity.