Senators give TikTok deadline over ‘depraved’ safety test

Technology Senators offer TikTok deadline over 'depraved' safety test Blackburn and Blumenthal demand answers by September 1 over an algorithm test tied to a teen's death.

Key points

• The Kids Online Safety Act co-writers Blackburn and Blumenthal are pressing TikTok to provide answers to 13 different questions before September 1st.
• This letter is sent to TikTok's CEO, Shou Chew, and Adam Presser, the CEO of TikTok USA operations.
• This is since of the information from Bloomberg Businessweek on an internal confidential document from 2023.
• One of those users was 16-year-old Chase Nasca of Bayport, New York.
• Senators Marsha Blackburn and Richard Blumenthal sent a four-page letter demanding answers, calling the company's decision to run the test "depraved".

Two senators have given TikTok until September 1 to explain an internal experiment that kept a safety feature away from 15 million US users, including a teenager who afterwards died by suicide.

In the Bloomberg Businessweek story, it is documented that TikTok modified its algorithm in 2021 to avoid overwhelming users with dangerous content; even so, this change was not implemented for all users.

For context, the modification was only withheld from a control group comprising 10% of American users. It totals approximately 15 million individuals, to determine if the safer algorithm decreases engagement in the application.

One of those users was 16-year-old Chase Nasca of Bayport, New York. This person was placed in the unprotected group in January 2022.

Over the after weeks, his algorithm fed him a steady stream of videos concerning sadness, suicide and loneliness. He died by suicide within a month, at age 16.

In practice, the Kids Online Safety Act co-writers Blackburn and Blumenthal are pressing TikTok to provide answers to 13 different questions before September 1st.

In practice, the list of queries includes such questions as who exactly knows regarding the experiment within the TikTok business, what were the reasons that children remained in the control group and an exact list of all algorithmic experiments conducted in the United States with the disabling of any safety feature.

It is not the first time that Blackburn and Blumenthal have come at TikTok for the sake of children's safety. These two have previously pressed documentation after leaks of court filings and passed the Kids Online Safety Act in the Senate Commerce Committee last month. It was right after the Bloomberg report surfaced.

Pareesa Afreen is a reporter and sub editor specialising in technology coverage, with 3 years of experience. She reports on digital innovation, gadgets, and emerging tech trends while ensuring clarity and accuracy through her editorial role, delivering accessible and engaging stories for a fast-evolving digital audience.

Taken together, the developments around senators give TikTok deadline over depraved safety test point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.