TikTok users most likely to overestimate true level of crime in London, new research reveals

TikTok users are the most likely people on social media to overestimate the true extent of crime in London, according to a new study.Sixty-eight per cent of TikTok users said total crime rose in the capital between March 2019 and March 2025, when it actually fell by 1.4%.The figure for people who do not use social media, who are likely to include the elderly, was 66%.It is not clear if the results were linked to the age of social media users, the content they are seeing, or other factors such as social background.TikTok users were most likely to overestimate the number of Londoners who are victims of crimeAFP via Getty ImagesPeople taking part in the study were also asked what percentage of Londoners did they think personally experienced a crime in the year to September 2025, excluding fraud, cyber-offences and murder. TikTok users put the figure at 40%, compared to 35% of people on Snapchat, Pinterest and Facebook, 34% on Instagram, 30% YouTube, LinkedIn and X, and 25% Reddit.The true figure was 12.2%, according to the analysis, with people who did not use social media saying 30%.People overestimate the level of crime in London, according to the new reportPA MediaAsked what percentage of Londoners feel unsafe walking in their area after dark, TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook users all said 60%, people on X 55%, and YouTube, Reddit, LInkedIn and non-social media users 50%.Read MoreThe real figure was 37%, according to the study which used a YouGov poll of 2,164 adults in the UK.However, Home Office statistics show London had the lowest rate of violent crime, at 26.7 violence against the person offences per 1,000 people, and the joint-lowest rate of sexual offences, at 3.1/1000 population.There were also differing trends on views on crime and the capital’s population depending on whether people voted Reform, Labour, Green or for another party.People overestimate how many Londoners feel unsafe walking in their neighbourhood after darkPAProfessor Bobby Duffy, director of KCL’s Policy Institute, said: “Each of us tends to see the London that fits the story we already believe, reflecting both our own biases and the messages we’ll see from an increasingly fragmented and polarised media, social media and politics.“Protecting a shared view of the reality of London is crucial to allow healthy debate about our capital – we’re all entitled to our own opinions on that, but not our own facts.”