TikTok adding more control for parents in wake of government bans

TikTok announced on Wednesday that it will be adding more parental controls in the platform after the United States and state governments have banned the app from official devices.

The social media platform explained that it is expanding its Family Pairing feature to allow parents to limit how much screen time their child spends on TikTok, view summaries of their child’s screen time and to allow parents to schedule when the app can mute notifications. Other features of parental controls include restricting their child’s exposure to certain content, deciding whether their account is private or public, as well as restrict who can directly message their child.

“We believe digital experiences should bring joy and play a positive role in how people express themselves, discover ideas, and connect,” TikTok said in a statement. “We’re improving our screen time tool with more custom options, introducing new default settings for teen accounts, and expanding Family Pairing with more parental controls.”

TikTok is a widely popular video-sharing platform among young adults and teenagers, and is facing pressure from the government to address cybersecurity concerns related to the app, which is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese tech company. Online platforms like TikTok have also faced criticism amid recent research showing that social media exposes children and teenagers to eating disorder content and cyberbullying.

House Republicans advanced a bill Wednesday among party lines that would give President Biden the power to ban TikTok, despite Democrats’ accusations that the GOP members of trying to rush through a ban.

The platform also announced new screen time controls for teenagers and users under 13 years old. Every account with a user under the age of 18 will have 60-minute daily screen time limit, and users will need to type in a passcode to extend their screen time on the app.

Those under the age of 13 will need a parent or guardian to type in a passcode to give them an additional 30 minutes of screen time.

The announcement said that research has shown that screen time limits can help teens manage their time online. TikTok will also send every teen user a weekly recap of their screen time, which they said could encourage them to set more limits.