Social Media – Tiktok supports maximum age

-We have no interest in anyone under the age of 13 remaining with us.

Norwegian head of Tiktok, Kjartan Sverdrup, tells Dagbladet.

On Thursday, Dagbladet was able to report that the government, led by Education Minister Kari-Nyssa Nordton (AFP) and Children's Minister Kirsti Toby (SB), is working to limit children's access to social media.

– Toby said: – It's too early to say how to do this, but we'll take a closer look at how to set and implement social media login age limits for kids.

The proposal has the support of the Swedish giant.

-We are open to finding good solutions with relevant politicians and organizations. Platforms should also bear some responsibility here. We agree that the presence of minors on social media is a huge challenge – and it applies to more people than on Tiktok.

We believe that the industry must work on finding robust, privacy-preserving alternatives, and we have taken the initiative to bring ourselves together to work on a solution. In the meantime, we're constantly improving our age verification tools

Removes users

Norway's Tiktok administration held a meeting with the Minister of Knowledge about the issue, and they are also a member of the government's Screen Usage Committee.

According to Sverdrup, the social media giant is very keen on restricting access to those under Tiktok's maximum age of 13.

We agree on the need for children to receive a safe digital education, and an education that is not entirely digital. This is also why we have a maximum screen time limit for our users between 13 and 18 years old.

According to the company, it uses artificial intelligence to remove about 20 million accounts every three months because it suspects users are under 13 years old.

– From a cynical point of view, aren't you losing money because of this?

-You should also live a life outside of Tiktok. Until you're 13, you can do things other than sit on social media, Sverdrup says.

He adds: – It doesn't look good to us if someone sneaks in and shouldn't be there.

Dagbladet also requested comment from Snapchat.

“Snapchat requires users to be over 13 years old, and if we see that an account belongs to someone under 13 years old, we delete it immediately. Age verification is a challenge for the entire industry, and we are also in conversations with other companies, organizations, regulators, authorities and politicians about Consistent and effective solutions.

Challenges

The Norwegian Tiktok manager says there are many challenges in coming up with a solution, both in terms of privacy and ease of use.

– The solution must work at all levels and in line with current regulations. Sverdrup says there are a number of privacy considerations that need to be taken if verification is required.

– Perhaps this is why it is difficult to find a solution to the problem. He continues: If there was a “magic solution” that solved everything and took into account all considerations, the solution would already exist.

One solution the government is considering is to log in with BankID. That can present challenges, says Sverdrup.

– It will be interesting to see how this solution will be implemented, whether it will be at the AppStore level or whether you will have to identify yourself every time you create an account on Tiktok, Facebook and Snap.

The Tiktok boss points out that you have to be aware of digital isolation because not everyone has a bank ID.

– In short, this is very difficult for all parties, says Sverdrup.