Leaked report shows TikTok withheld safety fix from millions
Leaked internal document ties withheld guardrails to a teenager's death in 2022
A confidential internal document has revealed that TikTok deliberately withheld a safety update from millions of users in 2021 to measure its effect on engagement.
According to the report, which was provided to Bloomberg, TikTok implemented a solution for preventing the users from being overwhelmed by bad content and conducted an experiment on whether its absence would encourage them to spend more time scrolling.
A control group of about 10% of TikTok users in the US, which is approximately 15 million people, kept receiving the old, unmodified algorithm.
It was done to observe the impact of the update on metrics of daily active users.
One of those classified in the unprotected category was Chase Nasca, a 16-year-old boy whose TikTok feed was filled with thousands of videos that revolved around themes of depression, loneliness, and suicide leading up to his death in February 2022.
An internal review carried out by TikTok’s algorithms and safety teams confirmed that the filter bubble prevention features did not kick in for Chase's account "by design", and it was not a mere coincidence.
The findings bring up new questions regarding the statements made by TikTok to legislators. Just weeks after the conclusion of its internal review of the case, the company’s CEO Shou Chew appeared before Congress, assuring legislators that teen safety and transparency were a priority.
In written responses to congressional questions about whether algorithmic testing had ever caused user harm, the company said its guidelines applied to all content, without disclosing that millions of users had been part of a live experiment weighing safety against engagement.
TikTok has said user safety remains a priority and that it continues investing in trust and safety measures, and the company has already settled several personal-injury suicide cases this year.
