Tighter Rules on Livestream "DiamondTok" Auctions

(IDEX Online) - TikTok has tightened its rules on the sale of loose diamonds to customers during fast-paced livestream auctions in the US.

The social media and e-commerce platform now requires sellers to provide GIA or IGI certification for all lab grown and natural gems, and has re-classified loose diamonds as a restricted, invite-only category.

That means sellers must obtain approval from TikTok before they can list or sell loose diamonds through its marketplace.

The fast-growing phenomenon, known as DiamondTok, sees sellers auctioning loose stones in high-energy livestreams, with rapid-fire bidding that can take as little as 20 seconds, countdown clocks and starting prices sometimes as low as $1.

While TikTok is tightening controls over the authenticity and description of the diamonds themselves, it is not restricting the fast and frenzied auction format driving the sales.

The new rules, published on October 26, 2026, apply to both product listings and livestream sales.

TikTok's Product Authenticity and Quality policy states: "All loose diamonds offered for sale must be genuine, accurately represented, and consistent with the specifications provided in the product listing. All diamonds must have a GIA or IGI certification."

Sellers must not misrepresent lab-grown diamonds as natural, market simulated stones such as cubic zirconia or moissanite as genuine diamonds, falsify grading documents or misrepresent a stone's weight, color, clarity, cut, origin or certification. They are also prohibited from making unsupported claims about quality, value, investment potential or resale value.

The precise scale of the DiamondTok trade is hard to establish. TikTok does not publish diamond-specific sales figures, but individual livestreams attract audiences in the hundreds, to a number of operators, including DiamondVaultLive, Gold Hive Live and True Carat Jewelry.