TikTok is profiting from sexual livestreams involving teens as young as 15, according to a BBC investigation. The platform takes a 70% cut from livestream transactions, where performers use coded language to solicit payments for explicit content sent via other platforms. In Kenya, where such livestreams are popular, young women and girls, some as young as 15, say they are pressured into sexual acts to earn money.
Former TikTok moderators claim the platform is aware of the issue but fails to act effectively, relying on inadequate AI moderation and restrictive guidelines. Despite promises to improve safety, including a meeting between TikTok’s CEO and Kenya’s president last year, little has changed. TikTok says it has “zero tolerance for exploitation” and enforces strict safety policies.
