A new beauty filter on TikTok shocked and horrified social media users on Monday over the implications it could have on society.
Computational artist Memo Akten posted a lengthy Twitter thread featuring TikTok videos of women trying out the "bold glamour" filter on the app that appears to provide unrealistic images of users. Akten warned his followers that this is nothing less than "psychological warfare" for younger social media users.
"I don't wanna be known as the tiktok filter guy, but ICYMI after attacking GenX w teenage filter, tiktok just dropped a new filter to take out Millennials & GenZ. ‘Beauty filters’ are not new, but the precision on this is beyond uncanny. This is psychological warfare & pure evil," Akten tweeted.
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Several TikTok users within the thread agreed, calling the app "scary" and "not healthy."
"It’s just scary because there’s a lot of girls out there that don’t realize when someone’s got a filter on, and they’re chasing perfection because that’s what they think everybody looks like. And this is not what people look like. So this is very scary," "Big Brother Australia" star Zoe George said.
"This is not healthy. This is not healthy. My insecurity is about to like skyrocket. My confidence is about to go way down," TikTok star Meghan Lane joked.
"Okay, I’m a photographer, like I have a commercial studio and this is why these filters are bulls---. Because people used them so much that this is what they think they actually look like. These filters have messed with our brains so much that people honestly think this is what they look like. This filter is insane," TikTok user @coffeetilvodka commented.
Twitter users also expressed their horror at the filter and the impact it could have on women.
"Gee I can't imagine why young women are anxious and depressed. This thread is the stuff of nightmares," comedian Bridget Phetasy wrote.
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Conservative Twitter personality Noam Blum declared, "TikTok is a public health hazard."
Kevin McCarthy creative adviser Maggie Howell tweeted, "I am so worried for middle and high school girls right now. Social media is hard enough to scroll through even for myself and my friends my age."
"I'm not sure where the AI filters are going- but it can't be healthy having a distorted view of yourself and others. This is not natural and at some point is not just fun and games," reporter Heidi Hatch commented.
"This is a psy-op against push women’s insecurities and to hypnotize men. This is a disgrace," Dr. Ralph Napolitano tweeted.
Author Steve Magness explained, "Our brain is predictive. When we give it bad data in, we get bad predictions out. When the data coming in= everyone is flawless...That becomes our brain's predictive comparison point. These filters are a mental health disaster in the making."
Akten noted in his thread that the filter also appears to alter male users, using himself as an example.
"The effect seems to do different things to different ppl. On men in general it's very subtle (not so subtle on women, much harsher & unrealistic expectations). But even on men it's not just "makeup", it makes structural changes (which is trivial once it builds the face 3d mesh)," Akten wrote.
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Experts and politicians have continuously warned about the threat posed by TikTok on younger users. In January, a Seattle public school district sued the company for wreaking a mental health crisis on the student body by recommending pro-eating disorder content.
