When you hear the phrase top 10 tiktok you probably picture viral dances, catchy sound bites, and a never‑ending stream of short‑form videos. Yet beneath the glittering surface lies a trail of disputes, legal battles, and ethical quandaries that have kept the platform in the headlines for years. Below we unpack the ten most talked‑about controversies, each one a reminder that the app’s influence is as powerful as it is polarising.
Why the Top 10 TikTok Issues Matter
Understanding these flashpoints is crucial for anyone who scrolls through the “For You” feed, because they expose how algorithmic choices, government pressure, and corporate policies can shape what billions of users see, hear, and even believe.
10 Erasing the Poor and Disabled
Ever notice how every influencer you admire looks flawless, lives in a swanky apartment, and seems to have endless cash? It isn’t just luck—internal documents leaked by The Intercept suggest TikTok’s moderation teams actively filter out content from users who appear “poor, unattractive, or disabled.” The guidelines reportedly ban anyone with an “abnormal body shape” like dwarfism or obesity, “excessive wrinkles,” or “unappealing facial features.” Even videos shot in rundown neighborhoods, cracked walls, or shabby décor are said to be automatically excluded from the coveted “For You” feed.
The company’s Chinese spokesperson defends the policy by saying it’s designed to curb bullying. Yet the leaked paperwork never mentions bullying at all, and the same defence has been used before to dismiss accusations of homophobic bias. In reality, the documents hint that TikTok simply wants to keep the feed populated with content that looks “attractive” and “high‑quality,” effectively sidelining creators who don’t fit a narrow aesthetic.
According to the internal memo, if a creator’s appearance or filming environment is deemed “not good,” the algorithm deems the video “much less attractive,” making it unworthy of recommendation to new users. This systematic sidelining of the poor and disabled raises serious questions about fairness, representation, and the platform’s role in shaping cultural standards.
9 Randonauting to a Dead Body
The term “randonauting” sounds like a whimsical mash‑up of “random” and “astronaut,” but the TikTok‑fueled craze took a dark turn in the summer of 2020. Using the Randonautica app, participants receive random geographic coordinates and are encouraged to explore “synchronicities” beyond their everyday reality. The hashtag #randonautica exploded, amassing over 700 million views as people chased mysterious coincidences during lockdown.
In June 2020, a group of Seattle teenagers decided to test the trend at a nearby beach. Their adventure quickly turned grim when they uncovered a suitcase washed ashore. Expecting cash or novelty items, they instead found the putrid smell of human remains. Police later discovered a second bag containing the bodies of a young couple—Jessica Lewis, 35, and Austin Wenner, 27—both victims of gunshot wounds. Their landlord, Michael Lee Dudley, 62, was subsequently charged with two counts of second‑degree murder, though a clear motive remains elusive.
TikTok user @UghHenry captured the shocking discovery on video, which briefly racked up tens of millions of views before being set to private. He later confessed, “The moment I got back home, I broke down. I still can’t sleep.” The episode highlighted how a seemingly harmless trend can intersect with real‑world tragedy, sending shivers down the spine of the app’s millions of followers.
8 Weaponizing Social Media in International Warfare
When nations clash, they often weaponize every tool at their disposal—including social media platforms. In June 2020, a deadly skirmish on the Himalayan border left twenty Indian soldiers dead at the hands of Chinese forces. In retaliation, India’s Ministry of Information Technology announced a ban on 59 Chinese apps, TikTok among them, citing concerns over privacy and data security.
The Indian government instructed internet service providers to block access to the listed apps and urged app stores to suspend updates and downloads. Given that India accounts for over a third of global internet users and tops the list for TikTok downloads—exceeding 600 million—the ban represented a massive blow to China’s digital ambitions.
While China itself faces criticism for censoring foreign news sites and monitoring its citizens, India’s move mirrors those tactics, raising the question: does restricting a popular app truly safeguard national sovereignty, or merely deprive millions of a beloved communication channel? The debate continues, with experts divided over the efficacy and ethics of such digital embargoes.
7 Egyptian Women Jailed for “Inciting Debauchery”
In most corners of the globe, calling yourself a “social‑media influencer” usually earns you eye‑rolls and jokes about “getting a real job.” In Egypt, however, it landed five young women behind bars. Influencers Mawada al‑Adham and Haneen Hossam, both celebrated for their lip‑sync and dance videos, faced severe punishment in July 2020 after authorities deemed their content “indecent.”
Hossam was first arrested in April 2020 for posting a tutorial on how women could earn money by chatting with strangers on the app Likee. Officials accused her of “inciting debauchery” and facilitating human trafficking. Shortly after, al‑Adham and three unnamed women were detained on similar charges. The court sentenced each to two years in prison and imposed fines of 300,000 Egyptian pounds (roughly $19,000).
The convictions were framed as violations of “family values and principles,” with the state alleging the creators used their accounts to commit crimes. The harsh sentences sent a chilling message to Egypt’s burgeoning creator community, underscoring the precarious line between self‑expression and legal peril.
6 Use of Unlicensed Music
TikTok has reshaped how we discover and consume music, catapulting tracks like Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” and Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage” to global stardom. Yet the platform’s meteoric rise has not been universally welcomed by the music industry.
In April 2020, the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA) threatened legal action against TikTok, accusing the app of copyright infringement. Universal Music, a key NMPA member, had been negotiating with TikTok since early 2019, but talks stalled, leaving songwriters—including the likes of Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift—without royalty payments for their tracks used in videos. One spokesperson labeled the situation a “blatant infringement,” noting the unprecedented scale of the alleged violation.
By July, however, TikTok struck a licensing deal with the NMPA, ensuring that songwriters receive proper compensation whenever their music appears in user‑generated content. The agreement quelled the looming lawsuit and restored a measure of harmony between the short‑form video giant and the music publishing world.
5 Body Shaming — Lizzo Steps In
Body shaming may have been a staple of beauty magazines for decades, but TikTok has become the newest arena where size‑based criticism thrives. In March 2020, pop icon Lizzo posted several videos of herself in swimwear, only to see them swiftly removed by the platform.
As a Black female artist who has long faced scrutiny over her body, Lizzo called out what she saw as a double standard: her videos were taken down, while slimmer creators’ similar content remained untouched. “TikTok keeps taking down my videos with me in my bathing suits,” she wrote, “but allows other videos with girls in bathing suits. I wonder why? TikTok … we need to talk.”
TikTok initially cited “confusion around the rules on sexual gratification” as the reason for the removal. After public outcry and Lizzo’s pointed criticism, the videos were reinstated in full, sparking a broader conversation about how the platform enforces its community guidelines and whether bias influences moderation.
4 Australian Government Threatens to Ban It
When Australia’s bushfires raged in late 2019, teenagers turned to TikTok to mock Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s decision to vacation in Hawaii while two firefighters lost their lives battling the flames. Memes set to Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start The Fire” amassed over 120 000 views in a week, while another video using the 2006 hit “Cry For You” gathered roughly 220 000 views. In total, the #scomo hashtag exceeded a million views before Morrison returned to work.
Months later, Morrison announced that intelligence agencies would scrutinize TikTok for potential data‑security threats, prompting several MPs to call for a nationwide ban. After a thorough investigation, however, the government concluded that TikTok did not pose a significant risk to Australian security, allowing the app to remain operational.
The episode illustrated how political satire can quickly become a diplomatic flashpoint, and how governments balance concerns over national security with public demand for popular digital platforms.
3 Stolen Content from TikTok Reposted on Zynn
May 2020 saw the meteoric rise of Zynn, a new short‑video app that quickly vaulted to the top of app‑store charts. Users were enticed by a pay‑for‑watch model and the promise of earning money by recommending the platform. Yet the app’s rapid ascent was shadowed by a wave of plagiarism accusations.
High‑profile TikTok creators—including Charli D’Amelio and Addison Rae—found their videos ripped from TikTok and reposted on Zynn without permission. Some impostors even duplicated entire creator accounts, attempting to masquerade as authentic internet celebrities. Investigations revealed that many of the stolen clips dated back to February 2020, three months before Zynn’s public launch.
While Zynn pledged to investigate and purge stolen content, critics also labeled the platform a pyramid scheme, accusations the Chinese developers vehemently denied. The controversy underscored the challenges new social‑media entrants face when trying to build a user base without infringing on existing creators’ intellectual property.
2 Data Collection Allegations
From the moment TikTok burst onto the global stage, its data‑handling practices have been thrust into the spotlight. Former U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly warned that the app posed a national‑security threat, prompting companies like Wells Fargo to order employees to delete the app from work phones. In the United Kingdom, regulators launched an inquiry into TikTok’s protection of young users’ personal information.
Tech experts argue that while TikTok’s privacy issues are genuine, they are not unique. Most mobile applications harvest extensive user data—location, browsing habits, device identifiers—and sell it to third‑party advertisers. The scale of data collection is massive, but it is a standard industry practice rather than a TikTok‑specific anomaly.
Amid rising U.S.–China tensions, Secretary of State Mike Pomeo voiced concerns that China’s cybersecurity laws could compel TikTok to hand over user data to Beijing. TikTok rebutted, stating, “We have never provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would we do so if asked.” No concrete evidence has emerged showing the Chinese Communist Party has demanded TikTok user information, leaving the debate largely speculative.
1 Blocking User for Calling Attention to Communist Concentration Camps
The plight of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang has ignited worldwide outrage, with reports alleging that over a million people are confined in state‑run “re‑education” camps. While Chinese officials describe these facilities as voluntary centers aimed at combating terrorism, many international observers label them concentration camps.
In 2019, 17‑year‑old Feroza Aziz, an Afghan‑American teenager from New Jersey, used TikTok to raise awareness about the situation. She disguised her message as a makeup tutorial, urging viewers to set aside curlers and instead search for information about the alleged camps. Her videos amassed over a million views before TikTok suspended her account, citing a “human moderation error.” The platform later apologized, claiming the content did not breach security guidelines.
Leaked moderation guidelines suggest TikTok bans “highly controversial topics” such as separatism, religious sect conflicts, and ethnic tensions—effectively censoring discussions about Uighur persecution, Tibetan independence, Falun Gong, and the Tiananmen Square massacre. The incident underscores ongoing concerns that TikTok’s content policies may align with the Chinese government’s narrative, limiting the platform’s role as a venue for human‑rights advocacy.