Technology
TikTok rolls out feature that should make parents happy. Their kids? Not so much.
TikTok announced a new feature on Wednesday that lets parents manage their children’s screen time.
When enabled, teen users won’t be able to view videos once they reach their time limit.
“We want people to have fun on TikTok, but it’s also important for our community to look after their wellbeing which means having a healthy relationship with online apps and services,” Cormac Kennan, TikTok’s head of trust and safety for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, writes in a blog post.
The new Family Safety Mode allows parents to access the Screen Time Management feature TikTok introduced in April 2019 as a part of its Digital Wellbeing tools.
Before, adults could limit their own screen time. Now parents can use the same tools to limit the amount of time their kids spend on TikTok.
The new parental controls will now be featured in a video series TikTok made in partnership with the app’s influencers to educate users about its Digital Wellbeing tools. They look like typical TikTok videos, each walking users through the function of each tool and how they can enable them.
The Family Safety Mode also lets parents control who their children can send direct messages to, and enable the restricted viewing feature that blocks content they find inappropriate.
The announcement comes a year after TikTok was fined for collecting children’s data. Family Safety Mode is now available in the UK. It will roll out to other countries in the coming weeks.
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