TikTok has been one of the fastest-growing apps in recent years, especially during the global COVID-19 lockdown, but security and privacy concerns have made several countries, such as Indonesia and Bangladesh, completely ban the video sharing platform, with the US on the verge of jumping on the bandwagon.
But the issue of countries deciding to ban TikTok goes beyond that of national security and user data.
India is the latest country that moved to ban TikTok, after numerous local users uploaded videos that had inappropriate content like pornography and even suicide.
Most recently, an 18-year-old girl committed suicide in New Delhi, and reports suggest that India’s ban on TikTok could have pushed her to take her life.
While the girl, who was widely popular on TikTok, left no suicide note, it’s understood that she had also been suffering from depression over the past few months, but the reason for that is unknown.
The news comes just weeks after another 16-year-old TikTok star Siya Kakkar took her own life, too.
Other incidents in India only justified the country’s move to ban the social media app.
A 19-year-old teenager was allegedly shot dead by his friend as they posed with a pistol to make a video, while there was another reported incident of a video going wrong from last year, when a man trying to make a video accidentally slit his throat on camera.
All this sounds very extreme, and thankfully, there have been no such incidents in Malaysia.
However, we want to remind Malaysians to not let social media take control of your lives.
We gotta say Malaysians have been making some quality content on TikTok (ahem, have you followed us there yet? It’s @syoksyoksyok, just sayin’), and let’s continue to keep our content clean, shall we?
Remember, if you ever feel depressed or need someone to talk to, you can always call the Befrienders helpline at +603-76272929.
You are NOT alone and there are always people who care about you.
Social media is a powerful platform and it should be used to inspire and be inspired.
Stay safe, guys!
by Kyle Roshen Jacob
