Key facts
- Senator Marsha Blackburn has written to Kik's parent company, MediaLab, demanding action on child safety.
- A recent report by the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) described Kik as a "predator's paradise" for minors.
- The report found that a test account posing as a 12-year-old received abusive messages within 12 seconds.
- Blackburn criticized Kik for lacking age verification and allowing users to message strangers, despite claiming to be an 18+ platform.
- Blackburn is a proponent of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and is negotiating a federal AI regulation package.
Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) has formally requested information from Kik's parent company, MediaLab, regarding the messaging app's safety measures for minors. The inquiry follows a recent report by the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) that characterized Kik as a "predator's paradise" and highlighted the platform's alleged failure to prevent the exploitation of underage users.
In a letter addressed to MediaLab CEO Michael Heyward, Blackburn expressed concern that Kik's policies may be designed to permit predatory behavior. The NCOSE report detailed how a test account posing as a 12-year-old received sexually abusive messages within 12 seconds of creation, underscoring the lack of effective age verification and content filters. Despite Kik's claims of being an 18+ platform, the report indicated that users can easily message strangers and that its content filters are ineffective.
Blackburn has given MediaLab one week to respond to a series of questions concerning its age verification processes, safeguards against stranger conversations, and risk assessments. She also seeks data on reports of adults initiating sexual conversations with suspected minors and the number of reports submitted to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline over the past five years.
Senator Blackburn, a vocal advocate for online child safety, co-led the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which passed the Senate in 2024 but stalled in the House. She is reportedly involved in negotiations with the White House on a broader AI regulation package that could include age verification requirements in exchange for other legislative measures.