TikTok is setting a daily time limit for all teen users on the video-sharing app to help rein in excessive social media use.
“In the coming weeks, every account belonging to a user below age 18 will automatically be set to a 60-minute daily screen time limit,” the company says in a blog post.
However, the time limit can be easily bypassed. A teen user simply has to enter their passcode to keep watching. Still, TikTok says adding this extra hurdle requires a teengers “to make an active decision to extend that time,” meaning it could nudge them to keep their app use under control.
“Research also shows that being more aware of how we spend our time can help us be more intentional about the decisions we make,” TikTok adds.
A teen user can also opt out of the daily time-limit system altogether. However, TikTok will still prompt them to set up a daily screen time limit if they end up using the video-sharing app more than 100 minutes in a day.
The system builds on TikTok’s effort last year to introduce screen time controls that can nudge people to take a break from the platform. “Our tests found this helped increase the use of our screen time tools by 234%,” the app says. In Wednesday’s announcement, TikTok adds: "Everyone will soon be able to set their own customized screen time limits for each day of the week and set a schedule to mute notifications."
“In addition, we're rolling out a sleep reminder to help people more easily plan when they want to be offline at night. People can set a time, and when it's reached, a pop-up will remind them it's time to log off,” TikTok says.
Of course, the same screen time controls risk reducing user activity on TikTok. However, the app is facing harsh scrutiny from US politicians—some of whom have been urging the White House to ban TikTok over fears it could be exploited by the Chinese government to spy on Americans.
US Senator Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) has also introduced legislation to outlaw teens 15 years and younger from accessing social media services. “Children suffer every day from the effects of social media,” he claims in a statement. “At best, Big Tech companies are neglecting our children’s health and monetizing their personal information.”
On Monday, meanwhile, Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, issued a 30-day deadline for US agencies to remove TikTok from government-issued handsets, ban future installations, and prevent internet traffic to the app.
The current age requirement for the standard TikTok experience is at 13 years. However, the app also offers a “TikTok for younger users,” which targets kids under the age of 13, and adds various restrictions to the video-sharing platform.