Ofcom has launched an investigation into TikTok over concerns that the platform's age verification methods may be insufficient to protect children from harmful content. The UK's online safety regulator expressed 'serious doubts' about TikTok's use of 'age inference', which analyzes user behavior to estimate age, and warned that this method could fail to detect significant numbers of underage users.
Regulator's Concerns
Kate Davies, Ofcom's group director for strategy and research, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'We found that some methods of age checks being used by social media are not working well enough. We have serious doubts about them and so we have launched an investigation into TikTok.' She added that age inference is not considered an effective method in Ofcom's guidance.
Ofcom's chief executive Andy Burrows suggested that TikTok is failing 'to prevent children from being exposed to a tsunami of harmful content' and called on the platform to 'clean up its toxic algorithms'.
TikTok's Response
A TikTok spokesperson said: 'We strictly enforce age-appropriate experiences through expert-informed platform rules and advanced age inference technologies, in line with major industry peers. In the eight years since TikTok launched in the UK, we have invested billions in platform safety. We are confident that we meet our Online Safety Act obligations and will work with Ofcom to demonstrate this.'
Wider Context of Age Checks
The investigation comes as Ofcom warned in a broader report that children can easily find pornography sites without age checks via search engines. Nearly a year after age check rules came into force under the Online Safety Act, around a quarter of the UK's most popular pornography services still lack such checks. Search engines like Google and Bing are not required to use 'highly effective age assurance' to prevent children from accessing pornographic content.
Ofcom's research found that a third of results on Google's first page and more than half on Bing led to pornography sites without age checks or UK access blocks. Both firms have committed to working with Ofcom on solutions.
Enforcement Powers
Ofcom can impose fines of up to £18 million or 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue, and can block or restrict sites in the UK in serious cases. Dame Melanie Dawes, Ofcom's chief executive, stated: 'Age checks are a cornerstone of the UK's online safety laws. When implemented properly, our evidence shows that age checks are helping to create a safer life online for children in the UK. But the job is not done and tech companies need to go further.'
Ofcom emphasized that a simple tickbox for age verification is no longer acceptable and recommends stronger methods such as facial age estimation, banking verification, credit card checks, and email-based estimation.
