The media regulator Ofcom has opened an investigation into whether TikTok is doing enough to stop children from using its platform, just a month after the UK government announced a ban on under-16s from a range of online services.
At the centre of the probe is the platform’s use of “age inference” technology – a method that estimates a user’s age based on the videos they watch and the accounts they interact with. Ofcom’s group director for strategy and research, Kate Davies, told the BBC’s Today programme that the regulator has “serious doubts” over whether such tools are good enough.
“Ofcom investigates TikTok's age checks after 'serious doubts' about its age inference technology.”
“We have very serious questions about whether age inference can be highly effective,” Davies said.
The investigation follows a review in May in which Ofcom criticised TikTok for not being “safe enough” for children and called for stronger action on online safety. The regulator now wants to examine how the app assesses user age and whether it has adequate systems to prevent children from viewing harmful content.
TikTok has pushed back against the regulator’s concerns. A spokesperson said the company is “confident that we meet our Online Safety Act obligations and will work with Ofcom to demonstrate it”. They added that TikTok “strictly enforce[s] age-appropriate experiences through expert-informed platform rules and advanced age inference technologies, in line with major industry peers”, and noted that the firm has invested “billions” in online safety since launching in the UK eight years ago.
Ofcom’s scrutiny of TikTok is part of a broader clampdown on sites failing to prevent children encountering adult content, including pornography. Under the Online Safety Act’s protection of children’s codes, which took effect on 25 July last year, platforms must use methods such as face scans to check a UK visitor is over 18. The regulator has already issued large fines against dozens of adult sites over suspected or non-compliance, and now it is stepping up pressure on social media platforms.
TikTok is not alone in using age inference technology – Instagram also deploys it – but Ofcom’s investigation signals that regulators are increasingly sceptical about the reliability of such methods. The outcome could have implications for how all social media companies verify the ages of their users in the UK.