French authorities: “Tik Tok” encourages suicide | technology

The French authorities brought a direct accusation against the platform “Tik Tok“Because its algorithms encourage minors to commit suicide, it began a broad investigation into the algorithm’s working mechanism in search of sufficient evidence to sue the company, according to a report published by Reuters.”

The Public Prosecutor in Paris, Laure Bequiau, confirmed that the investigation came at the request of the French Parliament, which fears the effects of the “Tik Tok” algorithm and the clips it suggests to teenagers, adding that the platform exposes its young users to danger.

The Parliamentary Committee confirms that this investigation is directly linked to the suicide cases that occurred in November of last year in which the TikTok platform was accused.

A group of French families accused the platform of encouraging their children to commit suicide by displaying a group of malicious clips that encourage suicide.

Bekwao added that the parliamentary committee’s report indicated a low rate of censorship on the platform, which makes it easier for minors to access clips that prompt them to commit suicide.

For its part, TikTok confirmed in a letter to Reuters its rejection of these allegations and its readiness to defend the platform’s innocence in all local and international courts.

The statement added, “More than 50% of the platform’s settings and features are specifically designed to protect teenagers and minors and preserve their psychological safety. We also remove 9 out of every 10 violent clips within seconds and before anyone even watches them.”

It is noteworthy that this is not the first time that TikTok has faced troubles with the French authorities, as the head of the parliamentary committee acknowledged last September 11 that the platform deliberately endangered the lives of its users and referred the matter to the judiciary.