moderate — Meaningful risk — worth knowing and watching for.monitoring — Quiet right now — we keep watching for its return.Inappropriate Content
Disturbing content and predatory comments in kids' YouTube
Comment sections and autoplay rabbit holes can expose young children to disturbing content and stranger contact.
How it works
- Comment sections and 'recommended' rabbit holes can expose young children to disturbing look-alike 'kids' content.
- Predators have used comments to contact children or signal timestamps in videos.
- Autoplay keeps pulling up the next video without supervision.
Warning signs to watch for
- A very young child on standard YouTube rather than YouTube Kids.
- Disturbing recommended videos, or strangers commenting and replying.
- Long, unsupervised autoplay sessions.
What you can do
- Use YouTube Kids with content settings, or supervised accounts.
- Turn off autoplay and disable comments for younger children.
- Co-view and curate a set of trusted channels.
In the news
Genuine reporting on this threat from established news organizations. Press play to watch in place; links are re-verified on a schedule, so a clip that is taken down is flagged and removed.
- moderate — Meaningful risk — worth knowing and watching for.BBC News
The disturbing YouTube videos that are tricking children
Sources
In immediate danger? Contact local authorities. To report exploitation, use the NCMEC CyberTipline.
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