TikTok is investigating why some users can't write 'Epstein' in messages

https://www.npr.org/2026/01/27/nx-s1-5689104/tiktok-epstein-direct-messages

The timing isn't lost on anyone.

It comes just days after TikTok finalized a sale that gave a consortium of mostly American investors control of TikTok's business in the U.S, a deal that averted a nationwide ban of the app over national security concerns tied to its Chinese parent company.

Among the lead investors is tech firm Oracle, which is run by billionaire Larry Ellison. He's a close ally of President Trump, whose connection to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has plagued the administration for months.

295 points · 31 comments · view on lemmy.world

31 Comments

DrakeAlbrecht@lemmy.world · 107 pts · 219d

TikTok, tomorrow: "We found the issue that was causing some users to be blocked from sending the word 'Epstein'. Now all users are correctly blocked from sending the word 'Epstein'."

tonytins@pawb.social · 69 pts · 219d

Oh, look... Streisand is trending again.

samus12345@sh.itjust.works · 60 pts · 219d (3 replies)

"We have investigated ourselves and found no wrongdoing."

ChakraNorris@lemmy.world · 23 pts · 219d (2 replies)

Just what I was thinking.

No way is this a technical issue, they probably tried to fuck with the algorithm to reduce any Epstein related stuff as much as possible and messed it up so now it's glaringly obvious what they tried.

abbadon420@sh.itjust.works · 5 pts · 219d (1 reply)

And it will have no consequence whatsoever

ChakraNorris@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 219d

No consequences for anything so far, why start now?

TrojanRoomCoffeePot@lemmy.world · 46 pts · 219d

"Investigating"

CombatWombatEsq@lemmy.world · 30 pts · 219d (6 replies)
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gedaliyah@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 219d (1 reply)

Loops is actually pretty great.

CombatWombatEsq@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 219d
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TrojanRoomCoffeePot@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 219d (2 replies)

"Register on Loops.video" not off to a promising start... >:/

CombatWombatEsq@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 219d (1 reply)
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TrojanRoomCoffeePot@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 219d

I'm all for it, if they're willing.

Electricd@lemmybefree.net · 1 pts · 217d

Got my account suspended on signup

Guess they don’t like VPNs or Addy

pulsewidth@lemmy.world · 23 pts · 219d

12974

DarkFuture@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 219d (8 replies)

Compromised app.

Time to delete.

That is, if you prefer the government not being able to easily spy on you.

Headofthebored@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 219d (7 replies)

People claim the Chinese government spied on Americans in TikTok. Like, that's probably true, but unlike America, China didn't have legal jurisdiction over Americans, and American interests couldn't censor anything. Obviously that couldn't stand.

atomicbocks@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 219d (6 replies)

Did everybody forget the time when TikTok sent a push notification to its users telling them to call their congresspersons? The issue has never been spying, the issue is manipulation. The US oligarchs couldn’t handle another country being able to pull the strings like that.

Headofthebored@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 219d (1 reply)

The only people getting anywhere when calling their congressperson are billionaires.

LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net · 1 pts · 219d (3 replies)

I was genuinely unaware of this. What was it about?

atomicbocks@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 219d
faxed@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 219d (1 reply)

Stopping this whole sale of tic tok thing. Briefly.

It seemed genuinely disconcerting to these people that youth were engaging in the political process by the officially sanctioned methods. After decades complaining about "apathetic youth".

But that can't be used as a post hoc rationalization for the initiative it was trying to stop. Also, it didn't work did it. So the efficacy of this "manipulation" ability is rather questionable.

atomicbocks@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 219d

It didn’t work because people getting calls from teenagers saying they would kill themselves if the ban went through made people more worried about it, not less. Not to mention that the calls overwhelmed the system at congress to the point that it went down.

Rock the Vote has existed for decades, nobody cares about youth engaging through officially sanctioned methods.

homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 219d

Everyone who never touched TikTok with a 10’ pole: what?

favoredponcho@lemmy.zip · 7 pts · 218d
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HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 219d

THAT'S IT I'M DELETING TIKTOK AND REINSTALLING FACEBOOK

finallymadeanaccount@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 217d

"We totally investigated ourselves and ... "

See Part 2

HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 219d

tryna figure out why any can

Ironfist79@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 219d

I'm sure it's totally an accident.

j_elgato@leminal.space · 2 pts · 219d

Maybe TikTok just isn't smart enough to get it?

Prikkeres@feddit.nl · 2 pts · 217d

In Dutch, this is called a “wij van WC Eend”-moment (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toilet_Duck#Advertising_slogan)

londos@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 218d
jwt@programming.dev · 1 pts · 219d (1 reply)

didn't kill himself.

jwt@programming.dev · 3 pts · 219d

Oh shit it's affecting lemmy too!