Joe Hindy / Android Authority
TL;DR
- TikTok claims the US authorities is threatening a ban if it doesn’t divest itself from its China-based homeowners.
- US officers imagine the app presents a nationwide safety threat, which TikTok denies.
- The app has already been banned on authorities gadgets in 30 states.
The struggle over TikTok‘s presence within the US continues to rage on. Within the newest report, TikTok’s CEO is claiming that the US authorities is threatening a nationwide ban on the app if it doesn’t divest from ByteDance.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew informed Reuters on Wednesday, “The Biden administration has demanded that TikTok’s Chinese language homeowners divest their stakes within the well-liked video app or face a attainable U.S. ban.” This might mark the primary time below the Biden administration that such a requirement has been made. It might even be essentially the most dramatic step taken by US officers and legislators so far.
Nevertheless, it’s not the primary time threats of a nationwide ban have taken place. Former President Donald Trump had beforehand tried to implement a ban in 2020. However the transfer was later blocked by US courts.
The motivation for implementing a ban stems from the worry that US consumer knowledge may very well be handed on to China’s authorities. This worry just isn’t distinctive to the US both as different international locations — just like the UK — have additionally taken measures to ban the app from authorities gadgets.
In response to the US authorities’s calls for, TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter mentioned “If defending nationwide safety is the target, divestment doesn’t resolve the issue: a change in possession wouldn’t impose any new restrictions on knowledge flows or entry.” China’s overseas ministry additionally chimed in claiming that the US has but to supply proof that TikTok poses a risk to nationwide safety.
TikTok has made guarantees to guard US consumer knowledge from China by counting on home Oracle servers and implementing different knowledge administration protocols. It has additionally been working for the final two years to assuage knowledge privateness issues after the primary ban try, spending over a billion on an initiative known as Undertaking Texas.
Nevertheless, a former TikTok worker of the corporate’s belief and security workforce informed The Washington Put up that there are important flaws with Undertaking Texas. The worker went on to say that it’s nonetheless theoretically attainable for China to entry US consumer knowledge. However there are reviews that the worker left TikTok months earlier than the corporate finalized its Undertaking Texas plan.
In line with Reuters, Chew is predicted to talk with US Congress subsequent week.
