What is TikTok 18+?
TikTok 18+ refers to adult or mature content found on the TikTok platform that is intended for users over the age of 18. This includes sexually suggestive dancing/poses, revealing outfits, discussions of sex and sexuality, and other topics of an adult nature. While TikTok’s community guidelines prohibit nudity and sexual content, more subtle sexually suggestive content still proliferates on the platform.
Types of mature content commonly found on TikTok include:
- Partially nude or scantily clad dancing/posing
- Suggestive lip syncing or duets implying sexual acts
- Raw conversations about sex, fetishes, and adult topics
- References to drugs, alcohol, and other adult themes
- Flirting, dating, and relationship advice for adults
- Sex education content covering adult topics
- LGBTQ+ content exploring sexuality and gender identity
While this content doesn’t outright break TikTok’s rules, the sexually suggestive nature means it’s intended for adult audiences, not children. TikTok does restrict some hashtags and videos from younger users to limit exposure. Still, mature content slips through due to the massive volume of content uploaded daily.
TikTok’s Community Guidelines on Adult Content
TikTok has a strict set of Community Guidelines that outline what is allowed on the platform, especially regarding sensitive or mature content. The guidelines explicitly prohibit users from posting nudity, pornography, or sexually explicit content.
According to TikTok’s policy on Sensitive and Mature Themes, “We do not allow nudity, including uncovered genitals and buttocks, as well as nipples and areolas of women and girls. Sheer and partially see-through clothing is permitted if compliant with our policies.” The guidelines also prohibit content depicting, promoting, or glorifying sexual solicitation, online hookups, sexual chats or imagery, sexual acts, pornography, or fetish scenarios.
In general, TikTok aims to limit mature or adult content and make the platform suitable for teenage users. While they allow some revealing clothing if it meets guidelines, nudity and explicit sexual content are strictly prohibited. TikTok utilizes automated systems and human moderators to identify and remove any content that violates these rules.
How Widespread is Adult Content on TikTok?
Despite TikTok’s strict policies, adult content is still relatively common on the platform. According to an analysis by The Conversation, searches for terms like “porn” and “sex” on TikTok return hundreds of thousands of results, with some videos garnering millions of views before being taken down[1]. While TikTok claims that adult content accounts for a tiny fraction of overall videos, experts estimate it could be as high as 5-10% of all content[2].
The amount of adult content on TikTok appears to be increasing over time. According to an investigation by Forbes, searches for sexual terms skyrocketed by 1,000% from 2020 to 2021. The publication found hundreds of accounts focused solely on adult content with millions of followers[3]. While many of these accounts eventually get banned, new ones quickly emerge to take their place.
Experts note that TikTok’s duet and stitch features make it easy to reuse and share adult content before moderators can remove it. They also point to livestreams as being a major source of inappropriate content that’s harder to moderate. Overall, while TikTok has stricter policies than some platforms, the sheer volume of daily videos makes it impossible to eliminate adult content entirely.
TikTok’s Efforts to Limit Adult Content
TikTok has implemented several measures to limit the spread of adult content on its platform. According to TikTok’s Community Guidelines, the company prohibits “content that depicts, promotes, or glorifies sexual solicitation or sexual objectification” (https://www.tiktok.com/community-guidelines).
TikTok uses both automated content moderation technology and human moderators to enforce these guidelines. The automated systems aim to identify content that violates policies upon upload. Human moderators then review flagged content to make final decisions on removal (https://www.tiktok.com/transparency/en-us/content-moderation/).
For more overtly mature content like nudity, TikTok restricts the audience to adults 18 years and older. The platform also limits features like commenting, sharing, and Stitch for age-restricted videos.
While these efforts have reduced the spread of adult content, some criticize TikTok for not doing enough. Accounts focused on sexual content are still discoverable, and many adult-themed videos slip through automated checks. The large volume of daily uploads makes comprehensive human review impractical.
Overall, TikTok takes meaningful steps to moderate adult content but faces challenges in completely eliminating it from the platform. The company continues working to improve detection technologies and content policies.
Criticisms and Controversies
There have been increasing concerns over the amount of adult and sexually suggestive content on TikTok that is accessible to underage users. Despite TikTok’s community guidelines prohibiting sexually explicit content, critics argue these rules are vague and not properly enforced (source).
One major controversy has been the phenomenon of underage users, sometimes as young as 9 or 10 years old, posting dances and lip-syncs to sexually suggestive audio clips or songs. This content often goes viral and enters TikTok’s main “For You” feed. While not explicitly sexual, many find these videos inappropriate and argue TikTok does not do enough to moderate this content or protect minors (source).
Critics say TikTok’s algorithm actively promotes sexually suggestive content to gain user engagement. They argue TikTok prioritizes growth and fails to protect children. In 2020, TikTok apologized and updated policies after underage users were exposed to predatory comments.
There are bipartisan calls demanding TikTok do more to restrict adult content and protect minors. Some say adult content should be segregated on a separate adults-only platform. TikTok claims it is working diligently to strengthen safeguards, but many argue significant improvement is still needed.
Impact on Brands and Advertising
Brands have had to adapt their approach to advertising on TikTok due to the potential for adult content. TikTok’s Branded Content Policy states that advertisers are responsible for ensuring branded content complies with laws and regulations (https://www.tiktok.com/legal/page/global/bc-policy/en).
There are risks for brands advertising on TikTok without the proper safeguards. Their ads could appear alongside inappropriate content, damaging their reputation. TikTok provides brand safety and suitability tools to mitigate these risks. Brands can exclude certain content categories, keywords, hashtags, and influencers (https://strikesocial.com/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-tiktok-brand-safety-and-suitability-tools/).
Even with precautions, some brands opt not to advertise on TikTok due to concerns over inappropriate content. Others take a cautious approach, starting with a limited budget and narrow targeting. Brand safety remains an ongoing consideration for advertisers on the platform.
Adult TikTok Influencers and Accounts
Due to TikTok’s terms of service, there are no overtly pornographic accounts. However, some popular adult content creators have managed to build large followings while skirting the content guidelines.
One of the most popular adult influencers is Bunny Delphine, who has over 9 million followers. Her videos feature suggestive themes and revealing outfits without crossing over into fully nude content. Other top adult influencers include Mia Khalifa, Francia James, and Adreena Winters, all of whom toe the line between PC and adult content.
Some popular niche categories for more risque adult content include ASMR videos, fitness modeling, sexy dancing/lip syncing, hot tub streaming, and suggestive cosplay/roleplaying. While this type of adult content stops short of nudity, it retains an obvious sexually suggestive element aimed at adult audiences.
Overall, while hardcore adult content is banned, TikTok does harbor a thriving community of adult-themed influencers and accounts that have become extremely popular.
TikTok vs Adult-Focused Platforms
While adult content does exist on TikTok, the platform has some key differences compared to sites solely focused on pornographic material like OnlyFans or Pornhub.
On dedicated adult platforms, users often explicitly seek out pornography and erotic content. These sites are designed specifically for sharing and consuming adult content. In contrast, TikTok has a much broader audience and range of content. Most users do not go to TikTok with the intent of viewing porn.
Adult sites like OnlyFans allow creators to monetize their content directly through subscriptions and tips. On TikTok, adult content creators cannot earn money directly and often try to drive traffic to other monetized platforms.
While TikTok aims to limit overtly sexual content, sites like Pornhub have essentially no restrictions on what can be posted. Porn sites enable uploading full-length hardcore videos, while TikTok limits videos to 3-60 seconds.
The public nature of TikTok means users may incidentally encounter some sexual content through hashtags or recommendations. On adult platforms, all users have explicitly chosen to view, upload or interact with porn. TikTok’s wide audience and limits on sexual content drive very different user motivations and behavior versus dedicated adult sites.
Tips for Parents
Parents wanting to keep their kids safe on TikTok have several options available. First, enable Restricted Mode, which limits the appearance of potentially objectionable content. Restricted Mode can be turned on by going to Settings > Digital Wellbeing > Restricted Mode and toggling it on. Parents can also set a passcode to prevent kids from turning Restricted Mode off.
Monitoring your child’s TikTok activity is also advised. Have open conversations about appropriate content and behavior, and consider co-viewing videos together. Set screen time limits if needed. Checking their liked videos, comments, messages and followers can also provide insight into their experience.
If inappropriate content does appear, it can be reported directly within the app by tapping the share icon on the video, tapping “Report”, and selecting “Nudity and sexual activities” as the reason for reporting. TikTok does remove content and disable accounts that violate their community guidelines.
Enabling Family Pairing is another option, allowing parents to customize settings and restrictions for their child’s account. Parents can limit screen time, restrict messaging, limit content visibility and more. TikTok’s Family Pairing gives parents solid oversight capabilities.
While risks exist, taking proactive steps can help protect kids from unwanted content on TikTok. Monitoring use, enabling restrictions, having ongoing conversations and leading by example are effective ways parents can promote responsible social media habits.
The Future of Adult Content on TikTok
There are open debates about how TikTok will continue to adapt its policies and enforcement around adult content in the future. While the platform has strengthened its restrictions against overtly sexual videos, predictions indicate challenges ahead as users find creative ways to circumvent rules.
Some analysts believe TikTok will eventually need to implement more stringent age verification similar to platforms like OnlyFans in order to properly limit minors’ access to adult content (Source). This could involve requiring users to upload ID for an 18+ account. However, privacy advocates argue this raises concerns around data collection.
TikTok will likely continue playing “whack-a-mole” with certain hashtags and accounts that promote sexual content. Each time TikTok bans certain terms, new euphemisms and creative workarounds emerge. Monitoring and enforcement at scale remains an immense challenge.
Influencers may also push the boundaries of suggestive content without directly violating policies. Ultimately, TikTok faces an uphill battle in limiting adult content while maintaining a platform for creative expression.
