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Refugee families in Syrian camps are begging for donations on TikTok while the company takes up to 70% of the proceeds, a BBC investigation found.<\/p>\n
Children are livestreaming on the social media app for hours, pleading for digital gifts with a cash value.<\/p>\n
The BBC saw streams earning up to $1,000 (\u00a3900) an hour, but found refugees received only a tiny fraction of that.<\/p>\n
TikTok said it would take prompt action against “exploitative begging”.<\/p>\n
The company said this type of content was not allowed on its platform, and it said its commission from digital gifts was significantly less than 70%. But it declined to confirm the exact amount.<\/p>\n
With TikTok declining to say how much it takes from gifts, the BBC ran an experiment to track where the money goes.<\/p>\n
A reporter in Syria contacted one of the TikTok-affiliated agencies saying he was living in the camps. He obtained an account and went live, while BBC staff in London sent TikTok gifts worth $106 from another account.<\/p>\n
At the end of the livestream, the balance of the Syrian test account was $33. TikTok had taken 69% of the value of the gifts.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n