An investigation by the Spanish foundation Maldita.es has uncovered more than 20,000 profiles on TikTok that are suspected of being linked to paedophile activity, with over 7,000 of them in Spanish. The probe, which ran for 35 days between 11 September and 15 October, also found more than 1,000 videos depicting child sexual abuse, collectively amassing around 48 million views.
The findings, published in a report titled "TikTok: the paedophile's home," represent the third such investigation by Maldita.es into child sexual abuse on the platform. The team analysed profiles, comments, and live broadcasts, and even created their own accounts to observe how TikTok's algorithm responded to such content.
According to the report, the researchers identified 231 profiles that posted 1,183 explicit items, 780 accounts used to attract buyers, and more than 10,000 accounts that solicited exchanges of sexual images in comments. In total, the foundation says it found some 26,000 accounts of potential paedophiles.
The investigation also documented 91 live broadcasts by minors across 17 countries, in which viewers urged them to perform actions, sometimes of a sexual nature, in exchange for money. Spain, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, and Russia were the most frequently represented countries.
Maldita.es argues that these profiles act as "genuine catalogues of child sexual abuse" and that TikTok profits from the gifts users send during such live streams. Clara Jiménez Cruz, co-founder and chief executive of the foundation, said: "Abuse is not hidden away in a little corner and it is not hard to find."
Platform response under scrutiny
As part of the investigation, Maldita.es reported a sample of 50 videos with explicit material to TikTok, which had accumulated 8.9 million views. The platform removed five of them (10%) and blocked another 13 for users in Spain only. Seventy-two hours later, 40% of the accounts that had posted them were still active. The most-viewed video in the sample, with over four million plays, was restricted in Spain, but its account remained open with more than 3,000 followers.
Similar results were seen with 35 posts that requested images of minors: two were removed, two were blocked in Spain, and 91% of the accounts were still active three days later. By the final day of tracking, 136 of the 231 profiles with explicit content (59%) remained on the network. The oldest material found dated from June and was still available more than four months later.
Maldita.es says it contacted TikTok before publishing and received no reply. There was no public response from the platform at the time of writing. In May, another investigation by the foundation stated that TikTok had agreed with Maldita.es in 99% of its complaints but had kept the accounts active.
Government and legal action
The Spanish Ministry of Youth and Childhood, led by Sira Rego, has sent a document to the Office of the Attorney General requesting an investigation into the paedophile activity documented by Maldita.es and asking for measures to protect affected minors. The ministry has also requested an urgent meeting with TikTok's representatives in Spain to explain their content moderation practices and future plans.
Rego has raised the possibility of provisionally suspending the service in Spain if authorities conclude that the platform does not adequately protect minors—a measure some media describe as exceptional. Any such suspension would require a solid legal basis and would need to pass a proportionality test, likely involving a judge.
Maldita.es and the law firm Cremades & Calvo-Sotelo have filed a complaint with the Prosecutor's Office for Cybercrime. The foundation questions whether TikTok is complying with the European Digital Services Act, which requires platforms to act "promptly" when they become aware of illegal content and obliges the largest ones to reduce risks for minors. This comes amid broader EU scrutiny of TikTok, including orders to overhaul its For You feed.
TikTok has asked Maldita.es to provide all the information from its investigation, saying that the lack of access to the full results makes it harder to identify and remove such content. Sources at TikTok told Spanish media that this situation complicates the preparation of reports for state law-enforcement agencies, with which they say they continue to cooperate. The company believes coordinated action is needed to tackle the problem, noting that those who distribute such material constantly change their methods to avoid detection.
The findings have sparked widespread concern in Spain and across Europe, where regulators are increasingly focused on online child safety. The case also highlights the challenges platforms face in balancing free expression with the need to protect minors, a debate that is likely to intensify as the EU's Digital Services Act is fully enforced.
