TikTok SG HQ Visit: TikTok Bolsters Safety Measures for Filipino Users

TikTok has intensified its efforts to safeguard its Filipino community, as evidenced by its Q3 2024 Community Guidelines Enforcement Report.

From July to September 2024, the platform removed 4.58 million videos in the Philippines for violating its guidelines, with 99.7% proactively eliminated and 98% taken down within 24 hours. This demonstrates TikTok’s substantial investment in advanced moderation technology and human review teams.

Platform Integrity Initiatives

During our one-day visit to the ByteDance office (Tiktok) in Singapore last week, we learned more about Tiktok’s efforts in maintaining safe community within its platform, improving measures to combat fake news and election integrity.

Community Guidelines Update

In May 2024, TikTok implemented updated Community Guidelines following extensive consultation with global organizations. The revised guidelines feature simplified language and increased granularity, enhancing accessibility for creators, researchers, and the broader community.

Election Integrity

TikTok launched the Philippine Elections Center, an in-app hub providing verified election-related content in partnership with COMELEC, NAMFREL, and LENTE. The platform’s approach to combating election misinformation includes:

• Collaboration with fact-checking organizations
• Reducing the visibility of unverifiable claims
• Prohibiting political advertising and monetization

TikTok’s global election integrity team actively counters covert influence operations (CIOs) by detecting and removing accounts engaged in deceptive behaviors.

AI Transparency and Media Literacy

As the first video-sharing platform to implement Content Credentials technology from C2PA, TikTok now automatically labels AI-generated content from select third-party platforms. The platform’s AIGC labeling tool has been utilized by over 37 million creators globally.

Safety Initiatives

Engagement with Stakeholders

TikTok organized briefing sessions with:

• 30 civil society organizations specializing in various social issues
• Over 40 Filipino creators in partnership with CICP
• Election watchdogs and government organizations

These sessions aimed to address emerging threats, maintain election integrity, and promote platform safety.

Digital Literacy Campaign

The #ThinkTwice Digital Literacy Campaign encourages critical thinking about content creation and sharing. It covers topics such as misinformation, AI-generated content, hate speech, and promoting positivity.

TikTok Shop Safety Measures

From January to June 2024, TikTok implemented several measures to ensure a safe shopping experience:

• Invested over USD 500 million in safety tools and personnel
• Prevented 37 million policy-violating product listings
• Deactivated over 1 million seller accounts
• Removed e-commerce features from 500,000 creators due to violations

The #TikTokShopSmart campaign provides users with resources for safer online shopping. All sellers undergo rigorous verification, including document submission and adherence to local regulatory standards.