deleting TikTok
For the record, I don't use TikTok (I've visited its webpage though) but I did use its predecessor, Musical.ly. Just like TikTok, back in the days Musical.ly was all the hype. Everybody seemed to use it so I hopped on the hypetrain too, fully knowing I have no interest with any of it. But I wanted to fit in, I want to make a video to be part of the community.
Not knowing what to do, I settled on doing a cardistry Musical.ly since it also happens I'm into cardistry and magic tricks at that time. So there was me in the big web as a ~10 year old playing with cards in pajamas with lord-knows-what music and below it is an offensive otherwise hilarious comment that goes "wheres even the magic in it?". I never made a video since. More accurately, the app served no purpose for me.
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It is the year 2022. I was chilling in my bedroom until a friend messaged me a TikTok reel of the old video. I learned two things right at that moment, TikTok is Musical.ly and this is horror. I know I'm going to have my hands on to delete the account but there's just one problem. I've already deleted the email linked to the account and I don't remember the password. Double trouble.
Anyways, I tried the TikTok customer support, telling them all about my technical issues but their reply was slow and unhelpful as they are largely circular.
This method wasn't going anywhere and gradually I start to forget my mission.
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It's 2024. I rediscovered my TikTok account somehow but this time I realized the stakes are high. What if my future employer sees this? What if my friends sees the account without me knowing? What if my shot at getting a girlfriend will be forever jeopardized? I have to delete the account no matter what.
Besides the customer support within the mobile app, I made sure to utilize the customer support from their webpage too. At first, I was simply doing the same thing I did 2 years ago but I knew in my head it wasn't going to work.
While I was browsing through the customer support, I found out you can report minors (13 and below) for using the app by US law. I wasn't entirely sure if reporting my ~10 year old self was going to work but nothing is worth not trying anyways.
As it turns out they do take it seriously. But they couldn't find evidence of 'the account owner not meeting the age requirements' so I wrote them the greatest email I could ever write to customer support.
They responded back with 'We have escalated your report internally to the appropriate team for their review.' and a series of steps on how to report minors. Once again another circular response. I felt distasteful, I thought a member of the TikTok team was going to hit delete immediately right after that email.
Within the next few days, I proceed to spam report on my account but no progress seemed to be made. I was ready to forget it all, to be in demise and hopelessness, and think this was all for nothing. But when it all seemed hopeless, I received the email that I've always longed for.
