Nine in 10 YouTube Smoking Shorts Lacked Age Restrictions in Korean Review

A South Korean public health review found that more than nine in 10 YouTube Shorts featuring smoking were available without age restrictions, raising concern about young viewers’ exposure to tobacco imagery on online video platforms.

Data from the Korea Health Promotion Institute showed that 271 of 300 Shorts examined for 2025, or 90.3 percent, were not age-restricted. The findings were disclosed by Rep. Han Zee-a of the main opposition People Power Party.

The latest result follows a similar pattern in earlier reviews. In 2023, 2,654 of 3,054 videos examined, or 86.8 percent, had no age restriction. The share rose to 93.6 percent in 2024, when 468 of 500 reviewed videos were accessible without such limits. Taken together, the figures indicate that unrestricted access remained widespread across the three years covered by the institute’s data.

YouTube’s harmful or dangerous content policy covers material posing an imminent risk of injury, weapons-related content and videos showing minors using tobacco, electronic cigarettes, vaporizers or marijuana. However, it does not categorically prohibit footage of adults smoking when the material does not promote the behavior.

That approach differs from South Korea’s established rating practices for films and television. Depictions of smoking and alcohol consumption are among the factors considered when setting audience ratings. Smoking scenes in films are also commonly blurred when those works are shown on television. A smoking scene does not automatically lead to a higher rating, because reviewers also assess how often the behavior appears and how it is portrayed.

The institute’s report also examined tobacco imagery in movies. Smoking appeared in 62.5 percent of the surveyed films rated for audiences aged 12 and older, while the figure was 82.1 percent among films rated for viewers aged 15 and above.

Han said the institute had made three requests to the industry about the issue, but related responses often went no further than displaying warnings that smoking scenes were present. She called for stronger safeguards, warning that repeated exposure through YouTube and movies could lead teenagers to glamorize smoking.

The findings highlight a regulatory gap between traditional screen content and short-form online video. As Shorts remain easy to access and circulate rapidly, the debate is likely to focus on whether platform controls and warning labels provide adequate protection for minors.