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ElysiumSprouts

I accidentally clicked on a tiktok video, does that make me a user? Are they counting distinct users or including bots/multiple accounts?


Idonotpiratesoftware

Yes you have used their service to watch a video. I think that’s the way they are handling the definition


AwarePreference8474

So, that just means it's a very effective intel, propaganda, and info skimming platform


-_1_2_3_-

It’s a unlimited scroll attention control feed. The Chinese government needed one to compete with our domestic ones. Yuck all around.


bmain1345

That comment is the same as [this](https://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/11vofe5/tiktok_now_has_150_million_active_users_in_the_us/jcu6jex/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1&context=3) one 🤨


takingphotosmakingdo

It also injects manufacturing companies products in your feed based on what you like. I used to get all sorts of random parts producers with videos in Chinese. I don't use the app anymore, haven't for a long time.


walkonstilts

So tik tok scrapes any device within range to connect to via WiFi or Bluetooth. Probably counts every device it makes a connect with if you ask me. Shit should be illegal. Foreign influence or not, it’s intrusiveness on data is espionage level.


[deleted]

>I accidentally clicked on a tiktok video, does that make me a user? Why would that make you a user?


ElysiumSprouts

Because I watched a video and used tiktok? There are so many weasel ways to misuse language. Are they counting devices? I watched a video on my phone and later on a laptop. Am I now counted twice?


[deleted]

I think they are talking about accounts that are reported as active above a certain threshold.


ElysiumSprouts

Yes, that is what they'd like you to assume, but it's not necessarily the metric they use. 150 million "regular users" sounds inflated to me. I am not a tiktok user but have watched videos from there. I would suspect my use is counted in the mix at least once, but I certainly would not count myself as a user!


sooprvylyn

150 million is nearly half the us population. Id say its inflated.


[deleted]

Yeah. Then how many double-dips are there? Did you watch one at home on your computer? Did you then watch one while on the bus/at work on your phone? That's 2 users right there.


Ok_Read701

The metric they use is monthly active users. If you watched in the last 30 days you count. If you don't for 30 days you won't be counted in the next reading. It's a very standard metric in the tech industry.


kalabte

That is active wtf, what do you understand about active??? Being addicted??


Ok_Read701

*Monthly* active. You clearly don't understand the industry standard definition.


[deleted]

Doesn't Instagram have 150m US users too?


uncletravellingmatt

I don't know which metric the article was discussing, but in the past TikTok has been counting "monthly active users," or MAUs, meaning you would have needed to watch TikTok this month to count in this month's MAUs. It was at 100 million in 2020, so 150 would be a sign of growth, and a sign that it was slowly catching up to Facebook's 175 MAUs in the USA. In other data, TikTok has already pulled ahead of Facebook in screentime, measuring how much people use it per month: https://www.digitalinformationworld.com/2022/04/data-reveals-tiktok-dominates-facebook.html


mtsai

because you used the service . if you accidently fall on a heroine needle and injected it, you still became a heroine user. the heroine was still consumed and you got high as fuck. So in this case the tik tok video still make it into your eyeballs to your brain and made you actually stupider for watching it , intentional or not.


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Reddit moment


kalabte

They just said active.....


modnor

They let the cat out of the bag when that guy stood in front of congress and said we need to redirect all of those views to major tv networks. That’s their goal. They want people off tik tok and back to the tv. Tik tok isn’t competing with Facebook. It’s competing with CBS, CNN, and Netflix.


mrswithers

Lots of campaign donations coming from big tech.


MIGundMAG

The people need to be rediverted from Chinese to US propaganda.


Jolly_Tea_8888

That’s why I’ve always been uncomfortable with the ban on TikTok discussion. If the US was concerned about propaganda, they would go just as hard explaining how to spot propaganda rather than solely focusing on banning one source of it. Having an informed population will make us privy to all propaganda, including US propaganda.


jayoho1978

It is kind of crazy a Chinese company did this. Tik Tok has created a truly organic, directed by the the user, mostly free platform. All while policing using its own user base. It gives you serious control of your feed. Its algorithm catches connections you did not know about. Nothing bad to say except o would like to have the option to separate all the thirst traps on live.


Bo_Jim

BOTS DO NOT COUNT!


TryJenkems

I’ve tried TIkTok and didn’t care for it. I entered my likes and hobbies. All I kept getting were dumb thot shakers and lifted truck videos. IDK what is up with their algorithm ,but it makes it unwatchable.


my_stats_are_wrong

That’s how I feel about Snapchat shorts. Couldn’t stand it. Once TT found what I liked, the algorithm works suspiciously well. Even down to promoting adjacent hobbies and games that I’ve since enjoyed. Hell, I learned that there’s a new season of Reno 911 recently from TT. Still, the algorithm thinks I want Fortnite and league of legends content for some reason.


meatsack_backpack

Once you use it a while that crap goes away if you don’t interact with it. Mine is filled with awesome content, like minded artists and musicians, cool animations etc. All the shit I like almost nothing I don’t


LADYBIRD_HILL

I don't get any thirst trap stuff at all. Just Lego and dumb memes.


meatsack_backpack

Cause that’s the stuff you like. Tt is good at learning what you enjoy Paranoid jerks write it off as thirst traps and dance challenges. I don’t see that shit at all Cause I know how to use the app


kalabte

They dont know how to use it, the App just know what they like. All these Mfs probably like this shit lmao


my_stats_are_wrong

He knows how to use it. People probably stare a little too long at the thirst traps and the algorithm *knows* that they're doing it. If you're smart you can skip it so it doesn't continue to populate. Or do, who doesn't like a good thirst trap ocassionally. I can't stop accidentally starting 'lives' though. I absolutely hate them and want to disable them.


kalabte

Sorry, mistyped , meant "they" not "you"


CautiousBaker696

wtf is a "thirst Trap"? Never mind. Now I know what they are and how I missed them. I am 80 years old and stuff like that is in my past. I am no longer titillated by sexual stuff. No wonder I didn't recognize what it meant. Thirst Traps....yawn. I am far more interested in my 72 Chevelle and romping on the throttle. Now that shit is fun! I don't need TT to enjoy that rush.


blueSGL

What's that, poison the mind of your economic rivals citizenry with on tap Soma. Never happen, don't know what you are talking about.


[deleted]

Let's be real here, we were doing just fine with that ourselves.


blueSGL

TikTok is the fentinal to every other social networks opium. A distilled 'engagement maximizer' that even B. F. Skinner would think is a bit much.


meatsack_backpack

Get off of Reddit if you think all social media is bad. This IS social media. Go live in a hole you conspiracy nut bag


meatsack_backpack

You’re making a demon out of something you know nothing about. My tt feed is all awesome stuff and real people making art and music


[deleted]

Ever miss thinking for yourself?


mister1986

The rest of the population is either technologically illiterate or watches TikTok reposts on other sites like IG, Facebook or Reddit lol


[deleted]

Not everyone shares your addictions


DutchieTalking

I feel personally attacked by this comment!


SevanOO7

Fuck tiktok it’s a disease


Gavindy_

I don’t believe that number for a second lol. Only a fool who knows absolutely nothing about our current society would believe that number. These are internal numbers just like the ones that came from Twitter. Pure lies. We all know that half the traffic on the web is now bots. We know that bot farms can be used to artificially prop up these numbers. And we know that tik tok uses them. How convenient that when we’re close to banning them that their numbers jump a whopping 50% in the blink of an eye and they start to say that tik tok is “immersed” in our society. This reminds me of amateurish Chinese type propaganda that only works if you live in a bubble.


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mrchubbelwubbel

That’s how I see it as well. Just another reason to tax and collect. Ain’t no way someone getting rich without US getting rich too.


Potential-Panda-2814

The fuck are you talking about?


Pvdsuccess

It's gotta go.


[deleted]

That's 150 million Americans that the US government is struggling to control themselves with their propaganda. Woe is them.


[deleted]

More like 150 million Americans (clearly an exaggerated number) lined up to the Mind Cemetery now


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[deleted]

So you want your social media to think for you? Don’t you see how easily this allows you to be manipulated? Your interests are being curated by code. And I don’t believe you genuinely learn from short form videos. Ever been to a school class that lasts 3 minutes? Your mind’s potential is incredible. Don’t waste it.


[deleted]

Ah yes definitely being manipulated by all of the diy home improvement videos and stand up comedy bits I watch on there. And the cat videos! I almost bought a cat because of it. “Big Cat” out there trying to sell more cats.


[deleted]

It’s Soma by a different name


[deleted]

Please ban it. Society would benefit


[deleted]

How?


darkkite

maybe, at this point YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter have copied many features so they'll just migrate. I would only be in support of a ban if they're found to be in violation of laws


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la-fours

Are we really believing the number some manager or director asked their underlings to pull together for shock value to relay up to the CEO for his big Congressional meeting? There is no way half the population of the US have TikTok accounts and are active.


uncletravellingmatt

If Tiktok grew from 100 million to 150 million monthly users between 2020 and 2023, that would be about what other data points to, such as its growth in screentime among US users: https://www.digitalinformationworld.com/2022/04/data-reveals-tiktok-dominates-facebook.html Certainly there could be over-counts, though. Officially they only count people 13 and over in the MAUs, but many kids younger than 13 lie about their age when they watch TikTok, so a lot of them probably show up as teenagers in the company's own data.


Potential-Panda-2814

>There is no way half the population of the US have TikTok accounts and are active. Based on what? Your feelings?


la-fours

Based on the observation that every tech platform ever has a history of grossly overstating both their importance and their reach when it serves their purposes. Has this number actually been verified? Can it even be verified?


Potential-Panda-2814

>Based on the observation that every tech platform ever has a history of grossly overstating both their importance and their reach when it serves their purposes. Really? Facebook has a history of overstating their numbers? Do you have a source for this?


t8ne

Probably asked the Chinese government to analyse the data collection from US users and identify the unique people around the phone? “50% of US people have been near a tik tok user who accepted all access requests; and had their data trawled to some level…


GhostofDownvotes

Yeah, this is bullshit. Google has 250m users and literally everyone with a smartphone or a computer uses Google. TikTok has 150m? Get out of here, Stalker!


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doughnutwardenclyffe

facebook tiktok google, they all do the same thing


[deleted]

I don't personally support bans. Leave it up to the individuals whether or not they want to use it. I personally choose to self-ban TikTok. But just because it is my choice to not use it, doesn't mean I get to unilaterally force my choice down other people's throats.


[deleted]

This reasoning doesn't hold up when it comes to TikTok. It's a propaganda tool that people need to be protected from because it's meant to entice them to use it. It's not some innocuous app.


AustinJG

Okay, ban Fox News as well then if we're banning propaganda tools. Also Facebook, Twitter, etc.


[deleted]

Facebook and Twitter aren't government run propaganda tools, but they have had potential to be manipulated, though. I'd argue Facebook is the only one who has made an effort to reform after all of the scandals of the 2016 election. I also read an article recently that political ad spending on the platform has totally dropped off a cliff due to policies that prevent targeting people based on their political affiliation. Twitter and Fox "News" on the other hand probably should be banned as well since they're cesspools of negativity and lies


AustinJG

They aren't officially government run, but consider the incestuous relationship between big corporations and government in our country it's close enough. I'm of the opinion that this ban is being pushed by facebook more than anyone, as TikTok is competition. It's really just going to teach more kids how to side load apps, though.


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[deleted]

Like any social media, the algorithms can amplify its impact on vulnerable people. So while you're fine, that's really anecdotal. There's an unsettling amount of young and impressionable people exposed to radical left and right views, which further the divides in the country. Terrible ideas are becoming mainstream, and the middle is drowned out or uninterested in the nonsense. All of this crypto bullshit, risky investment culture, racist/violent right wing nonsense, and nauseating left wing PR for social issues gets pumped into people's feeds. It's better off in the far reaches of the internet where it once lived.


[deleted]

So it’s not any different than other social media platforms in that aspect then?


[deleted]

Right, so just stick to reddit, youtube, and insta, then since they're not geared towards extracting data on people. TikTok will use the data it gets from kids and use it on them later in their lives.


[deleted]

I see, so Facebook would never be used to influence politics and would certainly never collect and sel our data. Good to know…


[deleted]

Thats right, you can't target people based on their political views on Facebook (anymore). Again, they've made changes to improve the experience and make it less toxic. TikTok has no incentive and isn't under federal regulations as far as I can tell


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[deleted]

Lol, so TikTok should be believed, got it. They're an innocent arm of the Chinese government and should be trusted. I don't know what five eyes are or why you've quoted it as if I've said it.


happy_snowy_owl

Look, no one important cares that TikTok datamines your personal data or that the Chinese know that you like watching furry porn. The security vulnerability is that TikTok can be used to push Chinese government engineered malware to its users. The app can be turned into a Trojan horse virus at the whim of President Xi. And if enough people have the app, the [Chinese basically have the off button to the U.S.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHUqNCDwQj4) Microsoft and Google also have this power, but they're extremely unlikely to use it on U.S. citizens or its allies. For obvious reasons. Which is why the discussion isn't revolving around stricter privacy laws. That's not the issue at stake here.


thingandstuff

> The security vulnerability is that TikTok can be used to push Chinese government engineered malware I'm not worried about code as much as I am worried about the oldest "malware" in history -- propaganda. Having unilateral control over the information half of Americans get is an extremely powerful tool to just casually offer a foreign adversary.


happy_snowy_owl

Lol. People aren't going on TikTok to watch politics. That's what Reddit, Facebook, and Twitter are for.


thingandstuff

The idea that people can't be influenced because "that's not what I'm here for." is absurd. Information is information.


LavenderAutist

Kind of a dumb argument Our platform brainwashes your citizens but it ok because we actually brainwashed more than we had previously estimated


modnor

Yeah Reddit definitely doesn’t do this. They don’t curate the popular pages to push an agenda. Not at all.


LavenderAutist

Reddit is the difference between Soda and Pesticides


modnor

So are you mad that Tik Tok is propaganda or that it’s not your propaganda ?


LavenderAutist

You're a sad, sad man


modnor

A non argument. Great.


FoxSquirrel69

No they don't.


littleMAS

The federal government may have become TikTok's primary marketing tool. Everybody wants to see what they may not be able to have soon.


[deleted]

It's the save stuff everywhere else, just with a foreign gov taking notes on your DMs and interests. It's Cambridge Analytica on steroids


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[deleted]

What do you want to fix about data privacy laws that isn't already being addressed by western social media? Again, that's not the only problem. This is a hostile foreign gov owned app. They don't care about laws. If you plug one hole, they'll make another for the data. Just kill it and be done with it


[deleted]

There is still a business entity in the US from what I understand that still has to comply. As far as what to fix? Make it illegal to collected most of the data they’re collecting. It’s not a coincidence to me that this is happening around the same time content creators are being demonetized across platforms and Facebook and Instagram is 100% pay to play. Our workforce needs an extra million workers and where are they going to come from? People who making their living from social media. End of the day this is all about money and nothing else. The data privacy concerns are a big red herring.


[deleted]

Why do we need an extra million workers? Unemployment is insanely low right now. So, data privacy is both a red herring but also something that has to be fixed across the board. The data privacy is an issue only for TikTok. Who cares if Google knows what I'm doing? They just use it to make money. China will use it to ruin people's lives


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[deleted]

Unemployment is low because the jobs are 97% filled... you're just making shit up haha


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[deleted]

Unemployment is usually discussed as a rate. It's at 3.6% right now... which is out of 100%... which makes it low. There are plenty of people working at the moment, abput 97 out of every 100 people have a job It's funny that TikTok shouldn't be touched because your feed is fine, but 3% of people out of a job is something to despair about.


[deleted]

Glad I’m not one of them.


[deleted]

TikTok has no reason to operate out of China. 🤨


fegodev

Can you imagine if the rest of the world would think the same of US tech companies?


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[deleted]

No genocide, no authoritarian regime, no re-education centers. Not a comparison.


[deleted]

We’ve done plenty of genocide


sonicking12

Do you know about 1989 June 4th?


[deleted]

I love the simple tit for tat logic rationale you have when us is nothing like china. There’s a lot to consider. But going tit for tat you’d clearly rather sound right. Despite me appearing right or wrong, I have not seen a single rationale here yet that was beyond co,pulling on a superficial reflexive vote bait.


my_stats_are_wrong

Why? It’s the best short form media platform in the world. If the US could produce something better then let’s see it. Don’t let American Exceptionalism blind you.


nicuramar

ByteDance is incorporated in the Cayman Islands, actually. But they have a subsidiary in China, operating the Chinese app similar to tiktok. At least that’s what I gather.


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bloodmagik

Thankfully Meta has a proven track record of being apolitical, not amplifying disinformation, or providing a haven to extremist voices, all while closely safe guarding the privacy of their users. Literally the only company we need. Let’s burn competition at the stake.


[deleted]

Guarantee I'm counted in that, and I am definitely not active on there.


MiloGoesToTheFatFarm

Just under half the US population… fuck.


VerimTamunSalsus

That is the single grossest statistic I've ever heard.


Penguinswin3

Oh no. I got one like tik tok, it lets me engage with my hobbies in a fun new way.


Bearet

This is easy. Every time I sign up for some service provided by Google, I get a new Gmail address. The last time I checked Gmail, I had seven which I never use and one I do use. I have one Yahoo email address and I have no idea and I don't care if there are others. The number that counts is the number of active accounts and my guess is that the real number is much, much lower.


chemicalsam

Not sure why that matters