(CNN)- TikTok is not actively working to limit the time teens use the app, according to an analysis by the company, according to documents that were accidentally exposed as part of a. significant demand,
Documents obtained by Kentucky Public Radio (KPR) and published in collaboration with NPR show that TikTok executives “talk openly about the many dangers to children” on the video-sharing app, the media reported Friday. Including barely time management tools to reduce time spent on the app.
One issue revolves around the impact of TikTok on teenagers who remain on the app for many hours, which can be detrimental to their mental health. Following public scrutiny over the app’s effects on vulnerable people, TikTok Launched Devices Time management for users under 18 years of age. For example, if the 60-minute limit is reached, users are asked to enter a passcode, which requires them to make an active decision to extend their time in the app.
In internal documents obtained by NPR and KPR, TikTok executives measured the tool’s usefulness based on its ability to improve “public trust in the TikTok platform through media coverage,” not by actual usage time of the application. Was reducing.
The documents quoted a TikTok project manager as saying that their “goal is not to reduce time spent” and another employee said the goal was to “contribute to DAUs (daily active users) and user retention.” Is.
The lawsuit filed by 14 attorneys general said that the device caused only a 1.5 minute reduction in daily usage and that the company made no effort to fix the problem. earlier this week,
TikTok has also distributed videos encouraging users to take breaks. However, one executive in the documents called them “useful in having good conversations” with lawmakers and acknowledged that “they are not entirely effective.”
“Unfortunately, this complaint cherry-picks misleading quotes and takes old documents out of context to misrepresent our commitment to community safety,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement to CNN. “We have strong security measures in place, including proactively removing suspected underage users, and we voluntarily launched safety features like default screen time limits, Family Escorts, and default privacy for under-16s. We support these efforts.”
On Tuesday, a bipartisan group of 14 attorneys general from across the country filed a lawsuit against TikTok, alleging that the platform has made youth “addicted” and harmed their mental health.
The lawsuits challenge several elements of the TikTok platform, including its endless content feed, TikTok “challenge” videos that sometimes encourage users to engage in risky behavior, and nightly push notifications that the Attorney General It is said that they can disturb children’s sleep.
NPR and KPR’s Friday report came after the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office accidentally filed an unredacted version of its lawsuit against TikTok. A state judge later sealed the complaint “to ensure that the settlement documents and related information, confidential business information and trade secrets and other protected information were not improperly disseminated,” NPR said.
“We strongly disagree with these claims, many of which we consider false and misleading,” TikTok spokesperson Alex Haurek said earlier in a statement. “We are proud and deeply committed to the work we do to protect teens and we will continue to update and improve our product. “We provide strong security measures, proactively remove suspected underage users, and voluntarily release security features.”
