TikTok ban: US government to take a decision soon!

Post author:Srishti Pandey
Post published:July 16, 2020

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows said the decision is expected in weeks and not months
The US government is analyzing the security risks posed by TikTok and other Chinese apps.

A group of 24 influential Republican Congressmen urged US President Donald Trump on Wednesday to ban TikTok and other Chinese mobile applications, stating that India has taken the extraordinary step of banning 60 Chinese-affiliated apps due to national security concerns.

As evidence, TikTok’s privacy policy for US residents is upfront about the vast quantity of user data it collects and shares with the CCP, the lawmakers said.

“As such, we urge your administration to take decisive action to protect the American people’s privacy and safety,” the lawmakers wrote to Trump.

“In June, India took the extraordinary step of banning 60 Chinese-affiliated mobile apps, including TikTok, due to national security concerns. However, the CCP’s systemic campaign to collect and illicitly transmit user data for the Chinese government’s purposes is not unique to Indian consumers,” the lawmakers, led by Congressman Ken Buck, said in the letter.

India last month banned 59 Chinese apps, including TikTok and UC Browser, saying they were prejudicial to the sovereignty, integrity and security of the country.

TikTok has defended its security practices in a statement, saying: “We are fully committed to protecting our users’ privacy and security.

“TikTok has an American CEO, a Chief Information Security Officer with decades of U.S. military and law enforcement experience, and a growing U.S. team that works diligently to develop a best-in-class security infrastructure. TikTok U.S. user data is stored in Virginia and Singapore, with strict controls on employee access. These are the facts,” the statement said.

The move to ban TikTok in the US has suddenly gained momentum after India’s decision related to the matter. TikTok has over 40 million American users.

Banning mobile applications such as TikTok by countries like India takes a big tool away from the surveillance work of China, a top White House official said on Tuesday.