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Bullying prevention

What is bullying?

Bullying can be defined in many ways, but it typically involves targeted, repeated behavior that intends to cause physical, social and/or psychological harm. The behavior can be carried out online or offline by an individual or a group who misuse their power, or perceived power, over another person or group of people who feel unable to stop it from happening.

We recognize that bullying can cause severe distress to people, and we do not tolerate it on our platform. TikTok is a global community that thrives on creativity and expression, and it is critical that people feel safe to express themselves without fear of bullying or harassment on the platform.

Identifying bullying behavior

There are various types of bullying behaviors that individuals or groups use to intimidate, degrade, or disempower others. Learn more about common forms of bullying.

Did you know?

  • Bullying affects those who bully, those who are bullied, and even those who witness bullying.
  • Bystanders, people who see bullying, can play an important role in stopping bullying behavior.
  • It’s quite common for people to be bullied by people they know (e.g. classmate, friend, colleague).
  • Bullying can occur in almost any social environment, including in schools, online, on the playground, and at work.
  • People who are bullied can also bully others. Those who engage in it often intimidate others in order to regain a sense of power or control that was lost in another area of their life.

Bullying prevention

There are many ways TikTok encourages people to interact with each other through comments, direct messages, live chat, Duet, Stitch, and more. They’re all part of what makes an online community engaging, but, like communication anywhere, also carry the risk of hurtful interactions. To foster a welcoming and supportive community, we have various app settings that allow individuals to control their TikTok experience. These settings may vary depending on your region and version of the app.

Private account

By default, accounts for individuals under 16 are set to private which means you can approve or deny follower requests, and only people you’ve approved as followers can see your content. Accounts for individuals who are over 16 start out as public, which means anyone on TikTok can view your videos and post comments, or start a Duet to engage with the content you’ve created and shared. You can easily change this in your Privacy settings. Learn how

Control who messages you

Direct Messages (DMs) provide a way for community members to communicate privately. Direct Messages can be sent and received from ”Everyone’, Friends’ (creators that you follow, who also follow you back), or ‘No one’. Only registered accounts who are 16 and older are eligible for Direct Messages, and it’s one of the features that a parent or guardian can control directly when Family Pairing is turned on. Learn how

Who can Duet and Stitch with you

While a Duet can be a fun way to explore your creativity, you get to decide who can Duet with you. You can choose one setting for all your videos, or make that decision for each video individually. If you are under age 16, in settings, you’ll see this is set to ‘No one.’ Only you can Duet or Stitch with your own videos. This is not able to be changed. If you are 16 or 17 years old, in settings you’ll see this feature set to ‘Friends’. You can change this to ‘No one’ or ‘Everyone’ based on your preference. Learn how

Who can comment on your videos

If you’re under age 16, in settings, you’ll see this set as ‘Friends’. This means only those who follow you and who you follow back can comment on your videos. You can change this to ‘No one’ to stop others from commenting on your videos based on your preference. If you are 16 or 17 years old, in settings you’ll see this function set to ‘Everyone’. You can change this if you prefer to limit who is able to comment on your videos. You also have the ability to delete any inappropriate comments posted on your videos. Just tap and hold the comment, then choose “delete”. Learn how

Filter comments

With comment filters turned on, offensive comments will automatically be hidden. You can also create a custom list of keywords so that comments containing those words will be hidden automatically, too. You can decide who can comment on your videos in general by adjusting your Privacy settings. Learn how

Remove a follower

You can delete a follower at any time, or permanently block an account from being able to view your content or send you messages. Learn how


Dealing with bullying

If you ever feel someone is harassing you or otherwise being inappropriate, help is available. If you are experiencing bullying on TikTok, please report them so our moderation team can review and take appropriate action if it violates TikTok’s Community Guidelines.


Resources

If you are in the US, here are some additional resources you may find helpful:

  • ConnectSafely: Learn more about the importance of safety, privacy, and security.
  • Cyberbullying Research Center: Learn more about identification, prevention, and response strategies and solutions to educators, counselors, health professionals, law enforcement, parents, and kids.
  • StopBullying.gov: Learn how to identify bullying and stand up to it safely.
  • WiredSafety: Learn more about the innovative and effective tools to help young people make wise choices in a world of media and technology.

If you are in the Canada, Kids Help Phone’s e-mental health services are available 24/7 across Canada. If you need to start a confidential conversation with a real person you can trust, you may contact 1-800-668-6868