Am I Shadow-banned on TikTok? What Did I Do Wrong?

Did you just search, “Am I shadow banned on TikTok?” Oh no. Does something feel off with the app? Do you think you’re in the doghouse? We hope this isn’t the case for you. The thought that the social platform is angry with you can make you very nervous. You don’t want to be on the outs with an app that could change your life. 

Before you go into panic mode, make sure you have all the facts. We hope that we can help you with all the information you need. We plan to tell you why you might be experiencing this ban. We’ll also tell you the signs to look out for to make sure that this pain is happening. 

We wouldn’t worry. We can help you get back to your content-creating ways soon. First, read this article for all the information that you need. 

How To Know if You’re Shadowbanned on TikTok: 3 Signs To Watch Out For

You might be suspicious of a shadowban because the vibes are off on TikTok. It’s not like you got a notification of a ban. You just have to create content on the app long enough to know it’s not the same.

TikTok creators would see that their content does not get to reach. It usually does. They would clock thousands of views regularly but only saw a few hundred. Where are all the comments? So, this shadowban is not something you are just being paranoid about. It does happen to content creators, and it does exist. 

You’re wondering how to know if you’re shadowbanned on TikTok. Like we said, it’s not like you get a notice. We can give you some signs to look out for.

1. Engagement Is Lower Than Normal

When you finally catch your stride on TikTok, you expect a certain number of views for your videos. You know that you have some loyal TikTok followers. They love to watch your videos and respond to what you have to share. There are some users that you expect to see in the comment section every time.

However, you see a noticeable decrease in your views, likes, and shares these days. Sometimes, videos get no views at all. You don’t even see your page regularly. There could be many reasons for a decline in your engagement rate. But it was likely due to a shadow band you didn’t know about.

2. Decreased Visibility

The For You Page (FYP) has helped so many creators reach new audiences. Getting a feature on that page means that you have an opportunity to attract some new viewers. These viewers could become long-standing followers. You don’t stand a chance if your content isn’t even showing up on that page.

TikTok knows the potential of this page. If it doesn’t feature your content on this page, they may have put a shadow ban on your account.

3. You Can’t Even Upload

For your views to be low in the first place, you have to get your content on the platform. Some users complain that their videos don’t even upload successfully. 

Their content might regularly be stuck at a stage where it’s under review or going through processing. This could be a sign that the platform is thwarting your progress.

These can be signs that there is a shadowban at play. You might feel devastated. How did you even get to this point on the platform? If you are honestly clueless, we can give you some reasons.

Answers to the Question, “Why Am I Shadowbanned on TikTok?

Some possibilities may be that you violated community guidelines or broke copyrighted laws. You may have also participated in a dangerous challenge or shared explicit content.

Okay. You’re not even suspecting that there is a ban anymore. After reading those signs, you are now certain that your account is under a shadowban. You’re currently racking your brain to figure out why this is happening to you. You are replaying every single interaction that you had within the last few weeks. 

Did you respond to someone too harshly? Were you too explicit about when you were showing off your outfit? You’re currently questioning everything, and we hope we can clarify things. For the TikToker asking, “Why am I shadowbanned on TikTok?” here are some answers.

1. You Violated the Community Guidelines

TikTok is a very liberal place. People from all walks of life come to the app and share. It gives a platform to people who may have some uncouth ideals. You often wonder how they can traverse the app saying the things they do. 

Because of all this liberation on the app, you forget there are Community Guidelines to follow. Yes, there are actual rules that people have to abide by on the app. It’s not as free as some people think.

TikTok may seem like a fun place for kids, but they take TikTok’s Community Guidelines very seriously. It condemns hate speech, the glorification of self-harm, harassment, or general bullying. This might shock you because you see this content online pretty often. 

This doesn’t mean that TikTok doesn’t see it. It just may take some time before they decide to take the necessary action against these accounts. Go through your content and cross-reference it. Do you think you’ve posted anything that could fall under the following headings?

2. You Violated Copyright Laws

TikTok values your creativity. That’s why the platform regularly updates the features of the app. So, when you use content that belongs to another creator, TikTok doesn’t like that. Sometimes, creative content is subject to copyright protection. 

Sometimes, it simply belongs to the original creator. If you don’t give proper credit to the owners of intellectual property, TikTok may take action against you. You must remember that it’s a bad look for TikTok if everyone there is copying existing creators. 

Consider a strike for copyright violation as motivation for you to create your own thing. Remember that if someone plagiarised your content, you would also want TikTok to take action against them.

3. Your Content Was Too Explicit

One thing that TikTok can boast is that it attracts a wide age range of users. It understands its responsibility to the younger users, so it has some limitations in place. There is some content that an 11-year-old will just never see. 

This doesn’t mean that the adults on the platform are free to post any kind of content. Nudity, drug use, and explicit content are still not permissible on this platform.

TikTok has very sophisticated technology at its disposal. It can tell when you have used words promoting inappropriate content. This is why you might see some creators using code words instead of saying the actual words. They do this to outsmart the TikTok algorithm. 

It is pretty risky, though. You may not want to take the chance. You could face a permanent ban depending on how serious your violation was.

4. You Took Part in a Dangerous Challenge

People know TikTok for its challenges. It’s part of how the platform got famous. There are dance and prank challenges on TikTok that could entertain you for days. Some are just good fun, and people of all ages can enjoy them. 

Others are kind of risky and bring an element of suspense. Do you remember the days of the One Chip challenge? Sure, it could cause significant discomfort, but it’s unlikely that someone would die from it. 

Unfortunately, since then, people have been taking part in TikTok challenges that could be fatal. TikTok is aware of its social responsibility to the rest of the world. They had to take a stand in response to these challenges going viral.

Extreme challenges that could result in death or criminal consequences don’t sit comfortably on the platform. If you take part, it should be no surprise that no one can see your content anymore. 

TikTok does not want to encourage people to go viral at the cost of potentially their lives. To do this, they issue a very harsh punishment.

TikTok Shadow Ban Checker and Remover

We are all about solutions here. So, instead of being sad about a shadowban, let’s figure out how to fix this. We want you to go back to your content creation, and we want it to reach millions. We will talk about how you can fix this ban. We will also mention the concept of a TikTok shadow ban checker and remover.

Search and Destroy

Remember the tips we gave you to determine if you’re under a TikTok shadow ban? One of them was that your content was just not getting the reach it normally gets. The solution is simply to find the offending content and remove it from your profile. 

We hope you have some time on your hands. Go to the analytics on your page and see the stats for each of your videos. You should have an idea of the views that you normally get. The shockingly low videos are likely the ones that trigger the ban. 

Hopefully, they don’t contain sponsored content. You might be under an obligation to keep the video up. 

The next step is to delete those videos. Then, wait about two weeks to see if that fixes the problem. It might seem like a very extreme move, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Is There a TikTok Shadowban Remover?

No, there isn’t a TikTok shadowban remover. We wish this was a real thing, but it does not exist. Unfortunately, TikTok has not created a tool that can do this. We don’t want you to spend your money online on platforms that promise to give you the service. TikTok hasn’t sanctioned them, and we don’t want you to give private information to a random website. 

You are better off taking our advice and removing the offending content. Then, sit tight. Maybe you could be lucky. TikTok may notice that they banned your page accidentally. The wait period could be even less.

How Long Am I Shadowbanned on TikTok: The Worst Case Scenario

We understand that TikTok is more than just a hobby for you. It has become a platform for earning a living, and you are fully dependent on it. A shadow ban can be tricky as the platform is a potentially lucrative one. 

However, life goes on, and we know you’re wondering how long this ban will last. If you’re asking, “How long am I banned on TikTok?” we may have answers. 

Can you afford not to use TikTok for two weeks? That is what many creators report as the regular ban time. If you sit tight for two weeks, you could come back stronger with more engaging content. 

You could even use the time to plan all the content you need to make up for your absence.

However, you should know your own financial situation. Sometimes, waiting two weeks could throw everything off for you. Instead, you may want to consider creating an entirely new TikTok account. Yes, it would mean starting from scratch. 

However, you could use accounts on other platforms to inform the public of your new TikTok account. Both options could be quite limiting for you. You may have to choose the lesser evil of the two options.

Of course, TikTok makes its own rules. You never want to rule out the idea of being permanently under a shadowban. This could be your reality if you did something particularly egregious against the platform’s rules. Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that after waiting about two weeks.

High Social Will Lift You After Your Shadowban

Wow, a shadowban? It looks like you’re going to need some help to make up for all that lost time. 

Regaining your footing on TikTok can be tricky. If we were you, we would pull in some professional help. Look further than your friends at High Social. 

It doesn’t have to be curtains for your account if you ask, “Am I shadowbanned on TikTok?” We understand the TikTok algorithm and can help you grow your content. We aren’t talking about spam behavior, either! Start growing your TikTok today.

TikTok 101