YouTube has become a great portal for kids wanting to watch just one more episode of their favorite show, but parents are finding out that some of these videos aren't what they seem.
Searching popular characters like Doc McStuffins or Elsa from Frozen leads to hundreds of videos with adult themes. Many are clearly parodies meant for adult audiences, but their thumbnails and sometimes their animation are so close to the original content that kids could easily click on it, expecting to see their favorite character.
There's even a YouTube channel dedicated to these kind of videos; "Toys and Funny Kids Surprise Eggs" is one of the top 100 most watched YouTube accounts in the world, generating more than 5 billion views.
On the landing page, you'll find a cute toddler along pictures of cartoon characters, including Mickey and Minnie Mouse.
But the videos? Titles like "HULK LOSES HIS PANTS" and "SEXY FROZEN ELSA BATH TIME" aren't exactly meant for kids.
If you're worried about your kids seeing these kinds of videos, there are steps you can take to help. The YouTube Kids app restricts some of this content, but some still makes it through. There's also "restricted mode" which can be turned on in YouTube settings to also restrict some of this content.
