Key takeaways
TikTok is a fast-rising star on the social media scene, with more than 1 billion active users worldwide by 2021. Although its parent company, ByteDance, is based in China, TikTok has around 86.9 million users in the United States and the app has quickly become an integral part of American culture.
Despite its popularity, two US presidents and several government agencies have expressed concern about TikTok’s data practices and lack of security. See the article : Politics Hour: June 24, 2022. And recently, there have been reports of a complete ban on TikTok in the United States.
This isn’t the first time ByteDance has faced a ban on its social media platform, but the latest in a long line of lawsuits, investigations and issues that have plagued TikTok’s US operations. Let’s explore why TikTok’s security is controversial, as well as the likelihood of a TikTok ban actually happening.
What is TikTok?
Unless you’ve been on a serious digital detox for the last few years, you’ve seen short-form TikTok videos all over the internet. TikTok is a social media platform that allows users to create short videos to share with friends and, for some influencers, the internet at large.
Its popularity has exploded since the start of the pandemic, especially among people in their teens and 20s who make up more than half of the user base. This may interest you : The United States and Rwanda: Strategic Partners – United States Department of State. While many people use TikTok to watch funny pranks or record their own version of the latest dance craze, growing concerns about the app’s data privacy and international security have drawn scrutiny from the government of United States.
Are these concerns justified, or is TikTok no more compromising than Facebook or Twitter when it comes to your personal data? Let’s take a look at the events that led to TikTok’s current precarious position in the United States.
History Behind TikTok Ban
On August 6, 2020, President Trump first attempted to ban TikTok in the United States with an executive order banning transactions between ByteDance and US citizens. He cited national security concerns. He backtracked eight days later with another executive order that gave ByteDance 90 days to spin off its U.S. TikTok business or sell it to an American company. ByteDance was involved in discussions to sell TikTok to Microsoft, Oracle and Walmart, but nothing materialized. A series of lawsuits by ByteDance and TikTok influencers ensued, effectively averting a ban.
In June 2021, President Biden revoked Trump’s executive order, but launched an investigation into the security threats TikTok could pose. By June 2022, employees in China had resurrected the rumor about backdoor access to US user data. Read also : The United States and Chile hold the 20th Defense Advisory Committee Meeting at Dis. Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr sent an open letter to Apple and Google asking them to remove TikTok from their stores due to “covert data practices”.
Part of the reason for stalled investigations and actions by American institutions are the opposing factors at play: the answer to how free speech plays out on the American Internet when hosted by a Chinese app raises policy issues foreign trade, political ideology and international data. security and more.
The implications go far beyond TikTok. Government decisions on whether to regulate or ban this teen-powered short-form video app could set a precedent for how other giants like Facebook and YouTube are treated legally and politically for years to come.
For now, questions about security and privacy remain as TikTok continues to claim that user data is stored securely on Oracle’s cloud servers in the United States, but other recent reports based on leaked audio from internal TikTok meetings have suggested that China can access the data anyway.
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What are TikTok’s security problems?
TikTok, meanwhile, has moved US user data from Chinese servers in Virginia, with a backup in Singapore; although the question of whether employees in China (and therefore the Chinese Communist Party) can still access US user data remains unanswered.
TikTok’s relocation of US data and commitment to “robust cybersecurity policies” have not allayed US security concerns. US Senators Josh Hawley and Rick Scott claimed in a press release that ByteDance has members of the Chinese Communist Party on its board of directors. They also suggested that the app cannot legally refuse Beijing’s requests for the data it collects, some of which it collects even when users don’t have the app open.
While these charges have not led to an outright ban on the app, they have led several government agencies to ban the use of TikTok on government phones. These agencies include the Department of State, the Department of Defense, the TSA, the Department of Homeland Security, the United States Army, and the Pentagon. However, it’s worth noting that other categories of apps, such as fitness apps, are also prohibited by the military because they track location data. Some tech experts question whether TikTok is merely a convenient foreign scapegoat for data privacy, as giants like Meta and Snapchat have also come under legal fire for questionable data and privacy practices.
Another issue that has been raised is TikTok’s questionable practices with its young user base. In 2019, two parents filed a class action lawsuit against ByteDance for collecting data on children under 13 without parental consent. The company agreed to a $92 million settlement.
Even before the attack on Capitol Hill in January 2021 (and the numerous lawsuits against social media platforms that followed), TikTok had banned all political advertising, though the fact that it had ease of circumventing the issue of campaign disinformation after the attack. But they may not get off that easy, as their algorithm for keeping politics off the platform appears to be spotty at best. In a Fortune report, TikTok let through 90% of fake political ads despite the ban on this type of advertising. This raises the question of which organizations can use (or misuse) loopholes in TikTok’s algorithm to influence political outcomes.
How likely is a ban on TikTok in the U.S.?
While a total ban on TikTok in the US is possible (it’s already happened in India), a lot of water would have to go under the bridge for it to happen soon.
Aside from not allowing the app on government phones, the federal government has done little to date to regulate TikTok, let alone ban it from all users in the United States. Congress has yet to create general federal data privacy laws (the American Data Protection and Privacy Act has been proposed as a bill, although it has not yet been passed) and it is difficult to regulate the security or data privacy with laws that do not yet exist.
The Biden administration’s investigation is ongoing and the results have not yet been reported. The Treasury Department’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) is still in talks with TikTok to try to create a security agreement; Talks are ongoing as the United States and China perform a delicate dance balancing their own ideas about content and data regulation with profitability and autonomy.
The bottom line
Regardless of whether TikTok is dangerous for the average user, this situation raises crucial questions about the regulation of data privacy, security and digital commerce in an increasingly interconnected and global economy. TikTok’s parent company is still in the process of negotiating an agreement with CFIUS that will satisfy national security concerns and allow TikTok to continue operating in the United States.
In reality, until there is clear evidence that ByteDance misuses the data of US users and the federal government enacts laws to prevent companies from doing so, it is unlikely that TikTok will be banned in the US.
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Which country is banned from TikTok?
| Location | Prohibited status | reason |
|---|---|---|
| India | Banned since June 2020 | Threat to data security |
| Russia | Restricted from February 2022 | War in Ukraine |
| Indonesia | censored | Inappropriate content |
| Bangladesh | censored | Inappropriate content |
Which country doesn’t have TikTok? Although the video sharing app TikTok was developed by Chinese company Bytedance, it is not available in China.
Is TikTok banned in USA?
ByteDance later reached an agreement that allowed TikTok to continue operating under its ownership in the United States, as long as it worked with a US-based database provider.
Is TikTok banned in Germany?
A German government official said the country has seen no signs the app poses a security risk and has no plans to ban it.
Where was created TikTok?
What is TikTok? TikTok is a multimedia app for iOS and Android that can be used to create and share short videos. It was initially launched as Douyin in September 2016, in China. The following year, in 2017, ByteDance launched the app for markets outside of China.
How was TikTok created? In late 2017, ByteDance acquired Musical.ly for a fee of $800 million. In 2018, Bytedance consolidated Musical.ly and TikTok user accounts, merging the two apps into one under the TikTok name. With this unified brand and user base, the app began to rise in popularity very quickly.
When was TikTok created?
Who created the first TikTok?
Zhang Yiming (Chinese: å¼ ä¸é¸£; born April 1, 1983 in Longyan, Fujian) is a Chinese Internet entrepreneur. He founded ByteDance in 2012 and developed news aggregator Toutiao and video sharing platform TikTok (Douyin/æé³), formerly known as Musical.ly.
Why do people like TikTok?
TikTok’s main selling point is that it comes with built-in recording and editing capabilities that make it easy for content creators to quickly record, edit and publish video content on the platform, and go viral when they get it right.
Why do people like TikTok more than Youtube? TikTok now offers a wider selection of songs and sound effects and video sharing features. Users are not limited to music, comedy or short and funny skits. You will find videos from other genres like dance, fashion, food, education, business, etc.
Why do people use TikTok for?
A TikTok account allows you to log into the TikTok app to create and share short-form videos using filters, effects, and music clips.
Why TikTok is so attractive?
What makes TikTok so attractive? Young people crave micro-entertainment and short bursts of distraction. This is one of the main attractions of TikTok. The videos are fun, short and trendy.
Why did TikTok get banned in the US?
Several US government entities have raised concerns about TikTok’s privacy and data security practices, going so far as to discuss banning TikTok for US users. ByteDance (TikTok’s parent company) has had a history of lawsuits over privacy issues.
