EVENT DOSSIER
U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn and Richard Blumenthal sent a formal letter to TikTok, demanding a response regarding an algorithm experiment that sparked major security concerns. This experiment resulted in approximately 15 million U.S. users losing their security protections, including a 16-year-old boy who later committed suicide. In the letter, the senators described the experiment as unethical, questioning why the company deliberately disabled the protection mechanisms designed to prevent minors from accessing harmful content and allowed minors to participate in control group tests. They demanded that TikTok answer 13 specific questions within a deadline, including a list of employees aware of the project, the legitimate reasons for allowing minors to participate, and a list of all algorithm experiments conducted within U.S. territory that involved adjusting or delaying security functions. TikTok’s CEO Chen Yidan and Adam Pureser have received this letter, but as of press time, the company has not responded to the media’s request for comment.
参议员玛尔莎·布莱克本和理查德·布卢门塔尔给 TikTok 设定截止日期，要求其就一项导致 1500 万美国用户（包括一名随后自杀身亡的 16 岁少年）失去安全保护功能的实验做出回应。两位参议员在信中称该实验“邪恶”，并质问为何公司故意禁用旨在防止用户接触有害内容的算法 safeguard，以及为何允许未成年人参与控制组。他们要求 TikTok 回答 13 个问题，包括知晓该实验的员工名单、允许未成年人参与的原因，以及列出所有因禁用或延迟安全功能而进行的美国境内算法实验。TikTok 首席执行官陈一丹和亚当·普雷瑟收到此信，公司尚未回应 TechCrunch 的评论请求。