Do you know? Besides Facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter and most social media platforms, TikTok is one of the world’s most frequently visited and most used applications
TikTok has also proven to be Top global apps by downloads considering the statistics on playstore.
TikTok is a 5mins max short-form video hosting app created by and also watched by its users.
Notwithstanding its popularity and its usefulness, there are numerous TikTok questions people have been inquisitive to find answers to.
Questions of what, how, why and others relating to them
This article extensively treats those questions you have long waited to know their answers to.
Below are my top sensitive FAQs and uncover all you need to know about them.
Let’s explore together!
Contents
Does TikTok Spy On Its Users?
Absolutely yes! This is a sensitive question submitting to the fact that your data provided has been stored in their database, regardless of this point TikTok can’t be called a spy app.
Every online social media app requires your personal information to give its users access to freely make use of their app.
This information provided includes your Gmail account details, email, phone number etc, in addition to asking for permission to access your location.
With all these provided info given by the user, TikTok can detect your actual location, have access to your search history, access your details from the phone number and Gmail provided and a lot more and this info are extremely important to them.
But due to TikTok’s privacy policy, the user’s information is concealed and can be shared with other users if the owner sets this feature in the application settings.
Your information lies end to end with TikTok app developers, stating that keeping track of the activities assists them in finding and eliminating fraudulent accounts.
Does Deleting TikTok Stop Spying?
Deleting your TikTok app does not stop spying, because the software is being deleted and not the account itself.
Deleting the application without deleting the account, your information is still intact and you can still access your account via a web browser.
Even when you delete your TikTok account, there is no guarantee that your account has been deactivated. Because it takes up to 30 days for any user account to be completely removed from the database.
But there are measures taken to stop your data from being collected by TikTok. And this is done by “turning off” the feature in the privacy setting, clicking on the safety column, and you will find the column written “personalize and data”.
Does Chinese Spy On You Through TikTok?
TikTok has undoubtedly denied that the Chinese don’t have access to people’s data and can’t spy on them, stating that their server is not in China.
And also there is no proof to attest to this answer to this question that the Chinese spy users using TikTok.
The TikTok app social platform just like Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms is not owned by China, rather it is owned by a private-sector group of companies called ByteDance Ltd.
The Chinese don’t own TikTok and don’t have access to information regarding its users.
Is TikTok listening To My Conversations?
I know many must have wondered if their social media applications can secretly listen to their conversation via microphone.
Absolutely NO.
All claims regarding this are false. TikTok doesn’t listen to its users’ conversations, access or permission regarding listening to the conversations of the user is only prompted when the user grants TikTok the permission to do so and this is when you want to make use of the feature demanding audio recording.
TikTok listens to its users only when the permission to do so is granted when asked by the app itself.
Users have also asked if TikTok listens to calls? They don’t in any way and there is no evidence attesting to this.
Also, features regarding this can be turned off by following the underlisted procedures;
- Open your phone setting and select the ” Application management” option.
- Go to “permission setting” and click on app permission
- Click on “TikTok” and turn off the microphone access of your device.
Through this process, you can easily enjoy your application without being listened to, without your permission.
Does TikTok Steal Your Information?
TikTok doesn’t steal or hack people’s mobile devices to gain access to their information.
Therefore TikTok can’t steal your information if they are not authorized to do so. Access rather than stealing is used in this context because permission is required before such an attempt will take place, so you agreed to those terms
According to TikTok’s privacy policy, it also accesses the information of users when they are underage as required.
Underage users below the age of 18 are not old enough to create an account on TikTok, so this will prompt the app to collect their information may be from the phone number provided or Gmail provided.
In addition, Tiktok doesn’t have end-to-end encryption for messages allowed.
So TikTok doesn’t steal your information, they ask for permission even before sharing your information with other social network websites if they are demanding to link up with TikTok.
Does TikTok Watch Your Phone?
TikTok keeps a record of your IP address, location, know your activities on the app and other information about the user.
And all these are collected when the user signs up on TikTok. This does not mean that TikTok is a spying application, but they collect such information for documentation.
No! They don’t watch your phone.
And won’t interfere with the user’s phone settings if not permitted to do so.
Is It Safe To Use TikTok?
TikTok is one of the safe apps installed on devices. It doesn’t pose any threat because your information is between the user and TikTok, and is not easily made public without the consent of the user or as a result of violations.
This can only be activated on your TikTok profile by clicking on the “Privacy and Safety” column.
If you don’t want anyone to easily locate you when you are creating your video or doing any other thing, you can easily deactivate the feature on your “Setting & Privacy” column.
This also works the same way if you don’t need comments on the video you posted or any private messaging.
What happens If I Uninstall TikTok?
Uninstalling Tiktop application from your mobile device doesn’t mean you have completely gotten rid of that account.
Your details and information are still in the database of TikTok, same with your messages. And all of these are retrieved immediately to reinstall or download the app again and provide your username and password.
Your data is lost only when you delete your account with TikTok, and your messages regarding the account are also deleted.
And this takes place completely in the space of 30days from the day the user deletes the account.
When you delete/uninstall your Tiktok app, your videos are lost and can be retrieved too if required by the user in the application settings.
How Do I Stop TikTok From Tracking Me?
There are procedures to set up this features on your device to limit/prevent TikTok from tracking you.
You can access this by clicking on TikTok privacy settings found in your TikTok profile and turn on the “private account”.
The location settings can also be turned off on your device settings. By clicking on the “manage application” setting and turning off the location.
What Data Does TikTok Collect?
TikTok demands your personal information before you can have access to use their social media platform.
This information includes your phone number, Gmail details and password, and other information which might require granting them access to access your location, phone storage, camera and others.
Pertaining to data consumption is a probability question and depends on how long the video duration you’re streaming and also the video quality.
Conclusion:
Tiktok has proven its usefulness in different sectors including marketing, entertainment,education, politics and more.This fun and addicting app has skyrocketed to be one of the most popular and most downloaded.
However the benefits gotten from this wonderful application can’t be overemphasized. And I hope the above listed answers helped you in one way or the other.
References:
- www.forbes.com: Top global downloaded apps
- www.tiktok.com: privacy policy