New updates are being added at the bottom of this story…….

Original story (published on July 22, 2022) follows:

TikTok is the most popular short video platform in the world. Millions of users access the service every day to enjoy the large amount of content available.

Like other similar services, TikTok implements a recommendation system that seeks to ensure that users receive videos according to their personal tastes on their feed.

That said, lately many TikTok users have been facing an issue where they get an ‘age-protected’ message while watching videos even with the ‘age restriction’ setting turned off.

TikTok ‘age-protected’ message even for users with ‘age restriction’ setting disabled

According to multiple reports, many TikTok videos or posts are unavailable due to a ‘This post is age-protected’ error message.

tiktok-age-protected-message-age-restriction-turned-off-1
Source

bruh I can’t view stuff on tiktok cause of some age restriction thing.. I’m 18?? if I lied about my age when I made my tiktok account surely I made myself older😭😭 I don’t understand
Source

What the fuck stupid update did tiktok do that I now have “age restriction” stopping me from watching some of the tiktoks sent to me!?
Source

This would be normal for certain videos with sensitive content if the users were minors or had the ‘age restriction’ settings activated.

But, the problem is that the error is appearing for adult users who also have the ‘age restriction’ settings disabled.

@tiktok_us and it’s new stupid age restricted thing is a huge problem. I’m freaking 37 and no…my content isn’t being restricted by the digital well being setting so all those pages posting that that’s how to fix it are wrong.

Why am I unable to see content when I’m 37?
Source

I was trying to view a reply someone made to MY comment on a video, and tiktok says the video is age restricted all of a sudden. I’m 25 years old. Also the restriction setting is set to off on my account. Wth @TikTokSupport
Source

TikTok creators experiencing fewer views and reach on their videos

TikTok creators are also noticing the problem due to the reduced reach of their videos.

TikTok Restricting Views?

I started an account and the first video I posted got 50k views. I’m experienced with marketing on tiktok so this was typical activity to me. However, every single video I’ve posted after that has got a maximum of around 500 views despite having a good watch time and view to like ratio. I started a new account to try to get around this. My first video on this second account did very well as expected but then sure enough, the videos after did terrible.
Source

Meanwhile, the only ‘solution’ that some users affected by the problem have found is to create a new account while the TikTok ‘age restriction’ algorithm receives a fix.

tiktok-age-protected-message-age-restriction-turned-off-2
Source

Unfortunately there is still no official acknowledgment on the issue from the TikTok team, so there is no guarantee that a fix will come soon.

We will update this story as events unfold.

Update 1 (July 27, 2022)

05:26 pm (IST): According to a user, TikTok support said that they are protecting users that are 13 to 17 years old. This implies that this issue could stay for an indefinite period of time.

Update 2 (August 01, 2022)

05:52 pm (IST): According to one of those affected, TikTok took around one week to update their viewing experience after providing DOB.

Update 3 (August 05, 2022)

06:41 pm (IST): If you have Family Pairing turned on, then it could be one of the reasons why videos show up as age protected. If so, then you can try disabling the option and see if it works.

Update 4 (August 12, 2022)

07:10 pm (IST): It seems the issue will stick around for longer since TikTok support hasn’t acknowledged or responded to users complaining about the problem on Twitter for several weeks.

We’ll continue to monitor the situation and will post an update if and when there are any further workarounds or potential fixes.

Update 5 (August 16, 2022)

06:11 pm (IST): Scammers are now trying to take advantage of the TikTok age-protected issue by telling those affected to reach out to certain Instagram accounts to get it fixed.

However, users should be aware of these kinds of scams and shouldn’t respond or share any details with them.

Tiktok-age-protected-scam
(Source)

Update 6 (August 17, 2022)

05:36 pm (IST): TikTok support on Twitter is now asking those affected to reach out to them via DM so that they can look into the issue.

Hi there, we’d like to look into this. Can you please send us a DM with more information including your TikTok username? (Source)

Update 7 (August 19, 2022)

05:45 pm (IST): One of those affected said that they were able to view restricted content through the TikTok website. So if you can’t watch restricted content on the app, then you can try this workaround.

Had to use chrome and go to the actual website for tiktok to view this as for some reason it’s age protected for me on the app 😡 (Source)

Update 8 (August 26, 2022)

06:24 pm (IST): As many users are reporting that they are getting the ‘age-protected’ message even after providing their age, here’s a response one of the affected users allegedly got from TikTok.

We took a look at the photo you sent us and the identification you provided does not appear to belong to the account holder as it did not match the videos uploaded by user. We require a valid form of identification for the account holder. (Source)

Update 9 (September 2, 2022)

06:29 pm (IST): TikTok users who aren’t able to watch videos due to ‘age-protected’ error can watch them by downloading through TikTok Downloader.

Update 10 (September 07, 2022)

06:26 pm (IST): Some users now report that they have been facing the age-protected issue for three months now and yet the company hasn’t fixed it.

Also, a user pointed out that, even after sending personal document for age verification, TikTok didn’t believe them and send a notification saying that their account will be removed as they are under 13.

tiktok-age-protected-response
(Source)

Update 11 (September 13, 2022)

05:57 pm (IST): A TikTok user tried to verify their age through license proof in a bid to get rid of the age-protected error.

However, TikTok decided to permanently delete their account instead. Support said that there are indications in the account that their age is below 13.

Tiktok-age-protected-acc-deleted
(Source)

Featured Image: TikTok

PiunikaWeb started as purely an investigative tech journalism website with main focus on ‘breaking’ or ‘exclusive’ news. In no time, our stories got picked up by the likes of Forbes, Foxnews, Gizmodo, TechCrunch, Engadget, The Verge, Macrumors, and many others. Want to know more about us? Head here.

Jean Leon
1613 Posts

A tech enthusiast since ever. I like to always be up to date on the latest news in the industry and write about it. Twitter: @jean_ERdC

Next article View Article

[Updated] Instagram crashing on all Android phones, but there are workarounds

Here's the crux of the article in video form: New updates are being added at the bottom of this story……. Original story from (June 5, 2018) follows: We're...
Jul 10, 2023 6 Min Read