Why I Delete TikTok After Every Use
It's 2022 And if you're not on TikTok, you've definitely heard of it.
There's even a bingo joke about if you got out of the pandemic and you haven't had a baby, gotten divorced, joined TikTok or made sourdough, you win the prize.
And I use TikTok. I enjoy TikTok. But I've started to delete TikTok each time I use it.
This is not a screen time thing. This is a privacy thing. And it all comes down to what's in TikTok's privacy policy.
What is a privacy policy?
A privacy policy tells users the type of information that the platform collects, and how they use that information. And the part that makes me a little bit nervous about TikTok's privacy policy comes down to the information that they collect.
They collect information that you provide to them. Obviously, like information that might be in your profile, your phone number access to your contacts if you want to look for your friends. But what I'm nervous about is device information. Let's take a look at it.
TikTok says that it collects information about your device, the device that you use to access TikTok. Stuff like your IP address, your timezone, which is pretty normal. They also collect information on your device system, so if you're on iOS or something like that.
Then it starts to get weird. TikTok also states they track…
App and file names, and types. Keystroke patterns or rhythms.
Keystroke patterns or rhythms?
I don't want TikTok tracking my keystroke patterns. I type out passwords with my phone. I type in emails with my phone. I type in text messages with my phone. I don't want anybody, not even TikTok, tracking my keystrokes.
So that is why I still enjoy TikTok, I still go in I do some fun dancing, I give you my information on TikTok. It's a fun platform. But as soon as I'm done, I'm deleting that. Because I don't want them tracking my keystroke patterns. It's a little bit of a hassle, but at least I know my information is safe.