TikTok banned more than 60,000 accounts in its Q2 2024 community guidelines enforcement report for violating the platform’s rules.
In Kenya, about 0.3% of the videos uploaded to TikTok—representing over 360,000 accounts—were removed during this period for sharing graphic sexual content and spreading misinformation. TikTok also reported that 99% of the videos and accounts it banned were proactively removed before other users had to report them.
Over 90% of the banned accounts belonged to users under the age of 13. In June 2024 alone, TikTok removed more than 178 million videos globally, an increase from the 166 million videos removed in the first quarter of the year. TikTok has enhanced its automation process to remove videos, reducing its reliance on human moderators.
“These technical advancements significantly reduce the volume of content that human moderators need to review, thereby minimizing their exposure to violative material,” the report stated.
TikTok’s Community Guidelines are designed to promote the well-being of users and encourage respectful interactions. Videos that violate these rules—such as those that spread hate speech, promote criminal behavior, or involve sexual abuse and harassment—can be removed. Repeated violations can result in temporary restrictions or a total ban of an account.
In April 2024, Kenya’s Ministry of ICT told Parliament that TikTok would provide quarterly reports on its efforts to combat offensive content, following an agreement made last year when lawmakers considered banning the app in Kenya.
Despite these concerns, TikTok’s popularity in Kenya has grown rapidly since 2020, especially among younger users who leverage short videos to earn money. President William Ruto met with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, and it was agreed that the platform would better moderate its content.
A 2023 survey by the Reuters Institute Digital News Report showed that 29% of Kenyan TikTok users turn to the app for news. During debates surrounding the Finance Bill 2024, TikTok played a key role in mobilizing opposition and analyzing the bill’s contents.
However, TikTok has faced criticism from Western governments, with the US ordering its parent company, China-based ByteDance, to divest from TikTok after both the US Congress and Senate passed laws banning the app. President-elect Donald Trump has promised to address the issue, given that over 180 million Americans use TikTok.
Globally, TikTok has over 1 billion users. Critics have argued that its content moderation policies are weaker than those of other social media platforms, prompting the company to invest over US$2 billion in improving online safety and data privacy.
