TikTok, the Chinese-owned app loved by teenagers worldwide, has been under scrutiny for some time. Governments in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand, and Europe have banned the use of TikTok on officials' phones in recent months. The allegations against the app include facilitating espionage, failing to protect personal data, and even corrupting young minds.
The Chinese government's potential access to user data from TikTok's millions of users is a pressing concern. Western security officials have warned that ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, could be subject to China's national security legislation, requiring Chinese companies to "support, assist and cooperate" with national intelligence efforts. TikTok's user data could also be accessed by the company's hundreds of Chinese engineers and operations staff, any one of whom could be working for the state.
The accusations against TikTok also include psychological operations. Its role is to spread disinformation and stultifying content in young Western minds, sowing division and apathy. TikTok has been accused of pushing inane time-wasting videos to Western children, in contrast to the wholesome educational content served on its Chinese app Douyin.
To address these issues, TikTok has unveiled two separate plans to safeguard data, including a $1.5 billion plan to build a wall between the US subsidiary and its Chinese owners. The company has also touted a "transparency center" that opened in the US in 2020 and one in Ireland in 2022.
Poll Question: Do you think TikTok is a threat to national security?
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TikTok, the Chinese-owned app loved by teenagers worldwide, has been under scrutiny for some time. Governments in the US, UK, Canada, New Zealand, and Europe have banned the use of TikTok on officials' phones in recent months. The allegations against the app include facilitating espionage, failing to protect personal data, and even corrupting young minds.
The Chinese government's potential access to user data from TikTok's millions of users is a pressing concern. Western security officials have warned that ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, could be subject to China's national security legislation, requiring Chinese companies to "support, assist and cooperate" with national intelligence efforts. TikTok's user data could also be accessed by the company's hundreds of Chinese engineers and operations staff, any one of whom could be working for the state.
The accusations against TikTok also include psychological operations. Its role is to spread disinformation and stultifying content in young Western minds, sowing division and apathy. TikTok has been accused of pushing inane time-wasting videos to Western children, in contrast to the wholesome educational content served on its Chinese app Douyin.
To address these issues, TikTok has unveiled two separate plans to safeguard data, including a $1.5 billion plan to build a wall between the US subsidiary and its Chinese owners. The company has also touted a "transparency center" that opened in the US in 2020 and one in Ireland in 2022.
Poll Question: Do you think TikTok is a threat to national security?
2 years ago | [YT] | 14