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TikTok staff raised child safety alarms. Court records show executives failed to act

Oct 20, 2026 · Katie McQue

Originally published by NPR News Read the original

TikTok staff raised child safety alarms. Court records show executives failed to act
Employees raised the alarm about minors appearing in sexual content on the app, which viewers could pay to access and the company would profit from — a potential financial crime. They also flagged that users under 18 were using loopholes to bypass age-restricted content and to block parents and guar
Employees raised the alarm about minors appearing in sexual content on the app, which viewers could pay to access and the company would profit from — a potential financial crime. They also flagged that users under 18 were using loopholes to bypass age-restricted content and to block parents and guar

The warnings surfaced in a trove of unreported court records. "I have been fighting about fixing this for months with people who didn't think the harms are severe enough," wrote one executive.

(Image credit: Imen Ben Youssef)

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