Why US govt is planning to ban TikTok

The United States is considering banning TikTok because it comes from China, according to the Secretary of State.

Speaking to Fox News, Mike Pompeo suggested that other Chinese-made social apps are also being looked at. ‘We are taking this very seriously. We are certainly looking at it,’ Pompeo said. ‘With respect to Chinese apps on peoples’ cellphones, the United States will get this one right too.’

Lawmakers in the US are concerned over handling of user data by the app’s parent company ByteDance – located in Bejing. Specifically, that it may hand over information to the Chinese government if asked. When asked if people should download TikTok, the short-form video app that’s hugely popular around the world, Pompeo responded: ‘Only if you want your private information in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party.’

The company has responded to the remarks in a statement, explaining: ‘TikTok is led by an American CEO, with hundreds of employees and key leaders across safety, security, product, and public policy here in the U.S. ‘We have no higher priority than promoting a safe and secure app experience for our users. We have never provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would we do so if asked.’

TikTok (and other Chinese-made apps such as WeChat) are also going to be banned in India, following an escalation in tensions between the two countries. The United States is dramatically ramping up its stance on Chinese tech companies – it recently announced that Huawei and ZTE are both designated ‘national security threats’.

‘Both companies have close ties to the Chinese Communist Party and China’s military apparatus, and both companies are broadly subject to Chinese law obligating them to cooperate with the country’s intelligence services,’ Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai said in a statement last month.

 


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