One of the country’s most popular and booming social media platforms is making it far too easy for child predators to exploit underage users, and the U.S. government is well on its way to cracking down on the problem. According to the Financial Times, both the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice are investigating TikTok over its handling of illegal child sex abuse materials, as well as a privacy feature that is enabling malicious actors to propagate and share illicit content.
Speaking with FT, the Department of Homeland Security’s unit chief of child exploitation investigations referred to TikTok as “a perfect place for predators to meet, groom and engage children,” and described it as the “platform of choice” for abusers. Between 2019 and last year, Homeland Security investigations of crimes originating on TikTok have risen over 600 percent.
