Knowledge for parents – How children get hard drugs via TikTok

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Seven out of ten Austrian young people under 17 use the social media phenomenon TikTok. In addition to innocent dance and music videos or entertaining animal clips, there is also a dark side. Underage people show they use drugs, glorify narcotics, pave the way for deals. What parents need to know about it.

The NDR magazine “Strg+F” investigates the phenomenon in an up-to-date report. “How old were you when you started it?” a teenage TikTok user asks her followers. 2000 click the “Like” button. Some say they started using drugs when they were 11, 12 or 13 years old. Some give the young audience consumption tips.

Chemically addictive substances are especially popular. One user reports that she first saw drug videos on TikTok when she was nine years old — and then developed a desire to try it out. Today you will find your dealer on the trendy short video platform.

TikTok emphasizes that such postings will not be tolerated: “The safety and well-being of our community is our priority.” Advertising or dealing in drugs is prohibited, relevant posts will be removed.

Attempts seem futile. Children who see drug posts are sometimes presented with more and more by the TikTok algorithm. The creators know how to hide the content from the moderators by using custom alternatives instead of blocked hashtags like #drugs.

Phenomenon can also be observed in Austria
The phenomenon cannot only be observed in Germany, according to Paul Eidenberger of the local federal investigation. The police are aware of the criminal activities taking place on social media. However, it lacks the ability to prevent such content.

“Just like in the normal market economy, organized drug crime also uses different means and ways to achieve a successful deal. An important factor is advertising, which – as rightly acknowledged – makes use of the TikTok platform, among other things, because the younger generation is particularly easy to reach here.”

Local youth’s most popular social media services:

Dealers make it difficult for researchers
In the succinct world of short videos, drug crimes are “belittled and excluded”, according to the interior ministry expert to krone.at, which means that people are often unaware of any guilt. However, after contacting the dealer on TikTok, the specific transactions would be processed on other channels – encrypted messengers like Telegram or Signal.

That complicates the work of the detectives, Eidenberger complains. “These criminal organizations are well aware of the legal possibilities of the police.” Although you can tap telephones by court order, the same communication on WhatsApp is taboo. “The police still have to operate here with investigative measures that are in line with the technical developments of the 1990s and are therefore no longer up-to-date.”

Nevertheless, drug crime is combated at all levels. “Priority lies with the supplier side, that is a clear and crystal-clear matter for the police.” The situation is different on the part of consumers who are often underage. “The possibilities and powers of the police quickly end here. And that should be the case, because the area of ​​responsibility of the police officers should not lie in social work, education or health care.”

Prevention is key
Drug crime does not start when the police intervene. Recognizing and combating the roots of the problem requires an effort from society as a whole. The police are already making enormous efforts in the field of prevention. “But the parents clearly have the best access to the kids,” Eidenberger says.

A possible preventive measure could be to better observe the online behavior of the children. Filters and locks are also an option – but these can be circumvented with certain tricks.

The expert points to secret emoji codes used on social media related to drug-related crime. A guide was recently published by the US drug agency DEA. The smileys and symbols listed there may be an indication that you are dealing with drug-aggrandizing content.

“Of course, the detectives cannot provide expertise on the educational side effects of such parental intervention,” Eidenberger said. Besides taking a closer look at what young people are consuming on TikTok, classic educational talks also seem appropriate…

Source: Krone

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