Currently, the global statistics of monthly active social media users are staggering.
At iFacts, we include a TikTok assessment as part of our social media risk assessment. Because of the explosion of the use of the platform and the lifespan of the content (up to two weeks), this creates immense risk, as well as the fact that “censoring” on the platform is less strict than on Instagram and Facebook but stricter compared to Twitter.
TikTok is a short-form, video-sharing app that allows users to create and share 15 seconds-10-minute-long videos on any topic. When TikTok first began, videos on the app were only 15 seconds long. The short turnaround was tailored to capture people’s attention, perfect for immediate consumption as they scroll through endless videos. In 2017, TikTok bumped up the video length to 60 seconds. That began to increase the amount of time people spend on the app. By 2018, TikTok had over 300 million users. Since then, TikTok began testing longer uploads and extended the maximum video length to three minutes in July 2021. That three-minute mark seemed to hit the sweet spot as TikTok blew up to reach one billion users worldwide the same year — nearly half as many as popular apps such as Instagram or Whatsapp. In early 2022, TikTok expanded video lengths to 10 minutes. This has left some questioning whether the social media app has forgotten its roots in bite-sized entertainment.
The primary age demographic of TikTok users is relatively young, which also ensures that more callous behaviour and content are seen. As of March 2022, there were 1.2 billion active users.
On social media, we all unwittingly tend to expose more than we would do in an interview. This gives a glimpse into the person that will enter your workplace and provides a good indication of whether they will fit your organisation’s corporate culture and if they could pose a possible risk to your organisation.
iFacts provides this vital service tool for all employers. The Social Media Check, available locally and internationally, significantly benefits companies. It lowers the risks of bad hires while matching the employee’s personality traits to the company culture and allows employers to monitor employee behaviour to minimise company reputational damage.
For employees, it adds value to their CV, increases the chances of a successful interview and enhances job security.