YouTube Kids may be a staple to everyone with kids and and a tablet. It is designed for kids with curious minds, curated with content that are fit for every children in the family. However, after being reported by parent and child advocacy groups to FTC for featuring adult content, the YouTube Kids app is now expected to be updated to filter out the content better.
Two consumer groups namely the Center for Digital Democracy and the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood cited that YouTube Kids features a number of videos that would not count as suitable to children - content that includes reference to alcohol and substance use, sex references, child abuse, and pedophila are some of its examples.
According to the report, YouTube Kids displayed material that involved sexual language, dangerous activities such as playing with matches and juggling sharp knives, and profanity as seen in a parody of the film "Casino" that featured Sesame Street's Bert and Ernie. Alcohol ads are even present, and adult discussions about family violence and pornographic content have surfaced from the app.
This has prompted Google to prepare an update that will address the issues currently plaguing the YouTube Kids app. The updated app will come with a more extensive set of parental controls to give parents the ability to turn off search access and set a custom password for the app.
Google has also included a guide for parents to explain upfront how its systems choose and recommend content and how they can also flag videos. The app will also prompt parents to make a choice about how broadly their kids want their children to explore. Parents can turn the Search function on to access a plethora of family-friendly videos YouTube Kids offers, or turn off the feature to limit a child's access.
