TikTok has around 1 billion active users, and around 3 billion total downloads.
Content creators from all over the world have recognized TikTok as a perfect space for expressing themselves.
Moreover, quality content is recognized by the TikTok community, as well.
However, as is the case with other social networks, there are people who intentionally and unintentionally violate community guidelines.
So, in order to save you from needless bans, we have decided to review the TikTok community guidelines.
Table of Contents
Why Are Community Guidelines so Important?
TikTok has users from all around the world.
Users of various nationalities, races, and religions follow the same trends launched by other users from TikTok.
TikTok’s global community is connected thanks to tolerance and understanding that can be displayed via this app.
Therefore, the aforementioned advantages need to be maintained and fostered.
In order to keep and create a safe and controlled environment, TikTok creators have introduced community guidelines.
Community guidelines are sets of rules that help everyone express themselves without worrying that their TikTok accounts will become the subjects of hate speech.
At the same time content creators have to practice content moderation before they post anything.
Thanks to contemporary technologies and tools, the TikTok app can recognize if someone is breaking the rules.
Moreover, community reports are always welcomed because in that way chances for abusers to get away are minimal.
Bear in mind that even content creators on TikTok are subjected to these rules.
Therefore, if they use music, leave comments/descriptions or make videos that are not appropriate, their accounts might be suspended or banned.
The only exceptions to guidelines can be educational, satiric, artistic, or documentary content.
Sometimes, TikTok officials are ready to tolerate some slightly aggressive videos if they directly affect the public interest.
Most Important TikTok Community Guidelines
Now, when you know a few basic stuff about community guidelines it is time to analyze them.
1. Hateful Behaviour
The first guideline that we are going to analyze is the one that prevents hateful behavior.
The account that spreads hate speech will be banned as soon as it is proven.
Basically, in no time.
Most importantly, there is no appeal against that and no first violation rule if the case is clear.
Hate speech can be based on protected attributes, prejudices, slurs, and hateful ideologies.
Protected attributes
If one incites violence, threatens, verbally attacks, or dehumanizes any particular person on the basis of his/her “protected attributes”(see the list below) he/she will be banned.
The list of “Protected Attributes”:
Prejudices and slurs
Although some harmless jokes based on prejudices might be funny, the TikTok platform is not a place to spread or post them because it can result in a permanent ban.
Moreover, TikTok even removes all the slurs from songs that might be offensive to someone.
We strongly advise you not to use any prejudices or slurs against a particular person, group, or nationalities when commenting.
Those types of comments might be understood as claims that they are less worthy, morally or physically inferior, or that they should be segregated.
So, we recommend you practice content moderation if you post anything.
Hateful ideologies
Hateful ideologies are all those ideologies that glorify off-platform violence.
So, if one promotes any kind of ultra-right-wing or ultra-left-wing doctrine via TikTok, the app will mark his/her account as the one that glorifies extreme violence.
The promotion of hateful ideologies includes justifying exclusion, sharing videos, pictures, flags, symbols, songs, or any other thing connected to a hateful ideology.
Nowadays, during the pandemics of coronavirus, many people share conspiracy theories and promote hateful ideologies as the only solution to avoid the doomsday scenario created by conspiracies.
Do not do that because your TikTok account might be marked as the one that inspires people to incite violence or commit violence.
Therefore, your account might get a permanent ban as a result and you will be without a chance to appeal against it.
2. Bullying and Harassment
This guideline is similar to the aforementioned guideline.
However, this one tackles verbal violence that might be a result of publicly stated opinion or content on someone’s account.
Any kind of threatening or intimidation due to someone’s opinion or appearance will be noticed and eradicated.
It is important to know that disrespect of the aforementioned protected attributes results in harassment, bullying, and threatening.
Therefore, it is important to raise awareness about that.
Finally, public figures are often victims of abuse or death threats due to their publicly stated opinion.
The community often has different standards when it comes to celebrities or public figures whether because they are rich or because they are powerful, so users think that they are immune to all comments.
However, that is, of course, not the case.
A user can criticize public figures to some degree, furthermore, it is productive to have critics and debates.
But there has to be a boundary.
TikTok community guidelines clearly state where that boundary is.
3. Violence
The TikTok platform is eradicating accounts that promote dangerous individuals or groups.
Any group or individual that personifies dangerous activities, illegal activities, criminal activities, risky activities, or a threat to public safety will be permanently banned.
Moreover, law enforcement officials will be notified by the TikTok safety team.
Therefore, the user or a group that is an account holder might be arrested.
In order to avoid troubles with the TikTok safety team and public authorities avoid posting the following things on your account:
Like we said above if you, via your TikTok account, promote organizations that endorse violence against particular groups, terrorism, hateful ideologies, or share misleading information, you will be banned.
4. Violent and Graphic Content
Any graphic content that depicts gratuitously shocking violence, someone’s death, or suffering will be eradicated.
Posting content of that sort can get someone banned and reported to authorities.
Therefore, do not post any kind of cruelty towards humans or animals because there is no first violation, the first violation of this rule will be, at the same time, the last violation of the account that posts that.
5. Self-harm or Suicide
As we all know depression is one of the most widespread and serious conditions in the 21st century.
People from all around the world are fighting with it.
So, TikTok has addressed that issue by forbidding any content that depicts or promotes self-harm or suicide.
Moreover, the platform forbids any comments that might cause eating disorders.
That is because overweight people are often a target for abusive comments.
And, we all know that abusive comments can lead someone to serious mental issues, eating disorders, and eventually, suicide.
Therefore, do not promote, glorify or normalize things like suicide or self-harm, and do not offend people because of their look.
6. Illegal activities
Illegal activities cannot be promoted on TikTok.
Anything that is illegal in your state cannot be endorsed via TikTok.
It means that people who advertise illegal trade, sexual exploitation, human exploitation, or any other form of harmful behavior will be permanently banned.
The promotion of the following categories might get you banned, as well:
Criminal activities
Do not share scenes or content of real-life kidnapping or attacks, prostitution, sex trafficking, smuggling, or selling certain regulated goods.
Drugs, alcohol, or tobacco
Do not promote consuming or selling of any illegal drugs, alcoholic beverages, or tobacco.
Moreover, if you share content where someone illegally sells any of the aforementioned stuff, you might end up in jail.
Weapons
TikTok community is strongly against any kind of violence.
We have mentioned that before, but bear in mind that “Repetitio est matter studiorum” or in English “Practice makes perfect”.
But let us get back to weapons.
TikTok does not allow you to describe, show or use any kind of firearm that might harm someone.
However, if you post videos from the shooting range, we believe that TikTok will not have anything against it because it represents shooting in safe conditions.
Frauds
We have all witnessed situations when someone tried to commit fraud.
Whether they are asking for your personal data, residential address, private email address, private phone number, or social security number it mostly ends up as a scam.
So, any user who promotes non-professional context or fixed betting, questionable investment, or pyramid schemes will be banned.
Gambling
Unlike Facebook or Instagram where sports betting or casinos are advertised regularly, TikTok has forbidden any promotion of gambling.
Therefore, avoid posting content about betting.
Personal information
Like we mentioned in the frauds section, some people might get your personal data and share it with others without your consent.
That might lead to serious problems with privacy, so the TikTok safety team pays particular attention to these kinds of offenses in order to keep you and your TikTok account safe.
7. Sexually Explicit Content and Adult Nudity
People often get too comfortable with social media and begin to post provocative content.
After some time provocative content turns into adult nudity and sexual content.
Twitch has had the same problem, and they have banned nudity and the display of sexual activities.
TikTok community guidelines are clear, as well.
Do not post any content where one can see genitals, breasts, anus, buttocks, consensual and especially non-consensual sexual acts.
Such users who post anything like that will be suspended or banned.
The community guidelines also forbid the depictions of sexual acts or fetishes.
We know that some users are having TikTok just because they can promote their Only Fans channels, but as it has been proven their accounts do not last too long.
Therefore, avoid posting content that might get you suspended because of sexual content.
8. Intellectual Property, Authenticity, and Integrity
As we all know TikTok is a platform where people can express themselves by creating videos.
Some of the videos might be bad or not popular at all, but the main point of the platform is that they are original.
Therefore, whenever someone steals or violates someone’s intellectual property TikTok officials must react.
Other things that might get the user of it banned:
Fake engagement is when you artificially increase the number of likes and views.
Due to changed metrics, TikTok mechanisms can register that something is wrong and therefore ban a user who does that
Misinformation is a widespread problem in the 21st century.
Therefore, all the people on the TikTok platform who intentionally share information that is not accurate will be banned.
Finally, impersonation is when a group of users or a user create/creates an account that is full of someone else’s content.
For the first violation of this rule, one might get asked to change the name, or add that the profile is not real.
If TikTok officials notice repeated violations, they will ban the person or people behind the profile, and the account will be deleted.
9. Minor safety
Community guidelines are particularly strict when it comes to minors.
Moreover, it seems like minors are discouraged from using the app.
Users who are under 18 are considered minors.
They are not allowed to host a live stream or use direct messaging.
In addition, their content will not appear in For You section.
However, minors are still the majority of TikTok users, so special attention needs to be paid to ensure their safety.
Due to this fact, TikTok community guidelines, safety mechanisms, and tools are taking care that none of the minors suffers any kind of violence.
Moreover, it controls that minors do not see violent and graphic content at all.
Whenever content that depicts anything aggressive appears, it is firstly hidden from minors, and then from other users.
Of course, any kind of content that depicts minors in harmful activities, amateur stunts, sexual activities, crimes, or anything illegal will be eradicated and its creators will be banned on TikTok for life.
Conclusion
To sum up, TikTok is a platform with endless possibilities as long as you stick to the platform rules.
As long as you avoid talking about politics and ideologies or affirm violence, you are safe.
Enjoy using your account for spreading love and creativity.
