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Report Hate on TikTok: Comments, Duets, LIVE and DMs

As of · General information, not legal advice

Illustration: Two teenagers sit at a paint-splattered table in a school art room after class, calmly looking at a phone showing two video tiles side by side.
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How to report hate on TikTok: secure evidence, report comments, duets, stitches, LIVEs and DMs, and protect yourself with filters and settings.

Insults piling up under your clip, someone mocking you in a duet, a LIVE chat turning against you. If you want to report hate on TikTok, one tap on “Report” is often not enough. This guide shows how to secure evidence before it disappears, how to report comments, videos, duets, stitches, LIVEs and messages, which settings protect you and when hate on TikTok is a criminal offence in Germany.

What should you save before you report hate on TikTok?

Everything moves fast on TikTok: comments get deleted, videos switched to private, names changed. So save first:

  • Comments: a screenshot with the @username, the text and the time. Add a screenshot of the video the comment is under.
  • Videos, duets and stitches: copy the link via the share icon. Take screenshots showing the account and the caption. Note what is said or shown in the video.
  • Profile: the @username and the profile link. Usernames can change, so note when you saved them.
  • LIVE: a LIVE is gone once it ends. Take screenshots of the chat during the stream and note the host’s name, date and time.
  • DMs: screenshots of the conversation with the username visible at the top.

Important with nude images: if you receive nude or sexual content, do not take screenshots of it and do not forward anything. Describe in a note what you received, from whom and when. If it shows minors, saving or forwarding it can itself be a criminal offence (§§ 184b, 184c of the German Criminal Code, StGB). Report the account and turn to the police or a person you trust.

More on screenshots, links and logs is in How to Secure Evidence of Online Hate.

How do you report hate on TikTok?

Reporting almost always works through a long press or the share icon. Exact labels change with updates.

Comments

Long-press the comment and choose “Report”. Then pick the reason that fits best, such as harassment, bullying or hate speech.

Videos, duets and stitches

Tap the share icon or long-press the video. You will find “Report” there. You report a duet or stitch like any other video. In the reason, state what the problem is, for example that you are mocked or insulted in it.

LIVE

You report a whole LIVE via the share icon or the menu in the stream. Single comments in the LIVE chat can usually be reported with a long press.

Direct messages

Long-press the message and choose “Report”. According to TikTok, direct messages are only available from age 16.

Whole account

Open the profile and look for “Report” in the menu or via the share icon. This fits when someone posts many videos or comments against you.

What can you do about duets and stitches that mock you?

Duet and stitch let others build your video into their own. This is often used to make fun of someone.

  • For the future: in the privacy settings, you decide who may duet or stitch your videos. You can also switch this off for each video in its own settings.
  • What is already online: published duets and stitches stay up, even if you change the setting. Save and report them one by one.
  • Legally: if someone insults you in a duet, the same applies as for a comment. Whether using your video was allowed in itself depends on the case. A law firm can assess this.

If someone filmed you without your knowledge, for example at school, and uploaded the video, that is different. Images of you may generally only be shared with your consent (§ 22 of the Art Copyright Act, KUG). Report the video and look for a reason such as harassment or privacy in the report menu.

How can you protect yourself from hate on TikTok?

Use these tools once you have saved what you need:

  • Comment filters: create a list of words to be filtered. You can also hold back all comments until you approve them.
  • Who can comment: everyone, only certain followers or nobody. This works for your account and for single videos.
  • Several comments at once: via the menu on a comment, you can select several and delete them or block the accounts behind them. This helps with a wave of hate.
  • Block: via the person’s profile. They can then no longer see your videos or message you.
  • Private account: then only followers you approve can see your videos.
  • Your own LIVEs: you can appoint moderators, filter words in the chat, mute individual viewers or turn off comments completely.
  • Messages: in the settings, you decide who may message you.

When is hate on TikTok a criminal offence?

Normal criminal law applies on TikTok too. The main provisions of the German Criminal Code (StGB) are:

  • Insult (Beleidigung, § 185 StGB), also when spoken in a video or LIVE.
  • Defamation (§§ 186, 187 StGB): false or unprovable claims about you.
  • Threat (Bedrohung, § 241 StGB).
  • Incitement to hatred (Volksverhetzung, § 130 StGB): stirring up hatred against groups, for example because of origin or religion.
  • Stalking (Nachstellung, § 238 StGB): when someone pursues you again and again. This is prosecuted ex officio.
  • Images without consent (§§ 22, 33 KUG, § 201a StGB).
  • Dangerous dissemination of your data (§ 126a StGB), for example when someone posts your address to put you at risk.

Whether a specific video or comment is a criminal offence is for the police or a law firm to assess. Insults are generally only prosecuted if a request for prosecution (Strafantrag) is filed (§ 194 StGB). The deadline is three months from the day you learn of the act and the offender (§ 77b StGB). If you are under 18, the request is usually filed by your parents as the people with parental responsibility (§ 77(3) StGB).

In acute danger? If someone makes concrete threats of violence: call the police on 110, the emergency number in Germany.

What does TikTok have to do after your report?

In the EU, TikTok is subject to the Digital Services Act (DSA). Under Art. 16 DSA, TikTok must accept reports of illegal content, review them carefully and tell you its decision. For possible criminal offences, look for a reporting route for illegal content and explain briefly which law the content breaks.

If TikTok rejects your report, you can lodge a free complaint under Art. 20 DSA for at least six months. What is possible after that is explained in Platform Not Responding to Your Report? DSA Complaints. All platform duties are in Digital Services Act: What Platforms Must Do About Online Hate.

What else can you do?

Frequently asked questions

Can I stop someone from using my video for a duet?

Yes. In the privacy settings and for each single video, you decide who may duet or stitch. But duets that are already published stay online, and you need to report them.

Is a hate comment under a TikTok a criminal offence?

It can be, for example as an insult or a threat. Whether a specific comment is a criminal offence is for the police or a law firm to assess.

What is the point of reporting a whole account?

If someone attacks you with many videos or comments, an account report shows the pattern. Still report the individual pieces of content as well.

The LIVE is over. Can I still do something?

Yes. Report the account and write down right away what was said, by whom and when. If you have screenshots of the chat, they are your most important evidence.

You can also report it through our form. If you say yes, your report goes automatically to a suitable cooperating law firm (Kooperationskanzlei) as soon as one is available. The legal assessment comes from the law firm, not from us. If there is no suitable firm right now, you get an email with other places to turn to straight away. Deadlines keep running: you can always file a request for prosecution (Strafantrag) with the police yourself.

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