"Light on Safety", 20 July 2024

Executive Summary

To attract users across the Global Majority, many technology companies have introduced “lite” versions of their products: Applications that are designed for lower-bandwidth contexts. TikTok is no exception, with TikTok Lite estimated to have more than 1 billion users.

Mozilla and AI Forensics research reveals that TikTok Lite doesn’t just reduce required bandwidth, however. In our opinion, it also reduces trust and safety. In comparing TikTok Lite with the classic TikTok app, we found several discrepancies between trust and safety features that could have potentially dangerous consequences in the context of elections and public health.

Our research revealed TikTok Lite lacks basic protections that are afforded to other TikTok users, including content labels for graphic, AI-generated, misinformation, and dangerous acts videos. TikTok Lite users also encounter arbitrarily shortened video descriptions that can easily eliminate crucial context.

Further, TikTok Lite users have fewer proactive controls at their disposal. Unlike traditional TikTok users, they cannot filter offensive keywords or implement screen management practices.

Our findings are concerning, and reinforce patterns of double-standard. Technology platforms have a history of neglecting users outside of the US and EU, where there is markedly less potential for constraining regulation and enforcement. As part of our research, we discuss the implications of this pattern and also offer concrete recommendations for TikTok Lite to improve.

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Findings

Our research found that a number of critical safety elements present in TikTok’s main app were not present in TikTok Lite - Save Data.

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Implications

Tech platforms have been faulted for neglecting the safety of their users in emerging markets, even though a significant portion of their user base hails from these regions. This dynamic has been characterized by some as an extractive relationship, where companies prioritize growth and profitability over the welfare of their users. Building upon previous research on this topic, our findings reinforce some of the ways TikTok and other tech platforms may not be prioritizing the experience of users in Global Majority countries.

With numerous global elections this year, TikTok and 20 other tech platforms pledged to combat AI-driven misinformation However, the absence of AI content labeling on TikTok Lite -Save Data heightens the systemic risks associated with generative AI on the platform at a time when such tools are increasingly deployed to target voters.

TikTok Lite’s lack of “dangerous act” labels such as “Do not perform the acts in this video” is concerning, especially in an emerging market context. Many of the people who purchase phones for the first time as teens in the Global Majority countries won’t be purchasing iPhones or flagship Androids. Instead, they are most likely to get phones that are better suited for TikTok Lite due to the fact that such phones are cheap, have little storage, and a long battery life. What does it mean if dangerous acts and graphic warning interventions are excluded for this segment of users?

TikTok Lite's lack of meaningful user controls has led to significant obstacles to its launch in Europe. In a public statement, the European Commission expressed concerns over TikTok Lite's potential impact on mental health, especially among children, citing worries around potentially addictive behavior. This apprehension is compounded by the absence of screen time management and other user control features in TikTok Lite -Save Data, further highlighting the disparities in the two apps’ experiences.

At the time of this publication, TikTok had not responded.

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Recommendations

In light of these findings, we recommend that Bytedance prioritize the development of a TikTok Lite application that places equal emphasis on user safety compared to its main TikTok app.

Specifically, we recommend that the following actions should be taken on TikTok Lite - Save Data

1. Add labeling and banners. TikTok should implement labeling mechanisms to safeguard against misinformation, dangerous behavior, AI-generated content, and graphic content on TikTok Lite. Such safety features should undergo rigorous testing to discern any contextual differences in their rollout.
2. Enhance user controls. The user controls available on the main TikTok app should be included on TikTok Lite.
3. Provide more information about safety features: It won’t be enough to simply implement the above 2 solutions as several users will have spent even years in the TikTok Lite -Save Data ecosystem without experiencing any safeguards.TikTok should also run in-app media literacy campaigns aimed at educating users about the intentions behind these features, reflecting the local languages and context.