The US suspects that China is using Tiktok for espionage.
The future of the Chinese video service Tiktok in the United States is again under discussion today when the CEO Shou Zi Chew is before Congress.
In the United States, the possibility of banning a highly popular application suspected of spying is being considered.
Tiktok is suspected of enabling Chinese espionage because, according to several studies, Chinese authorities have access to the information of the app’s users. Tiktok has more than a billion users worldwide. There are more than 150 million users in the United States.
Calls to ban Tiktok in the United States have intensified as relations between the United States and China have deteriorated.
The Singaporean CEO Chew, who is being heard by the Energy and Trade Committee of the House of Representatives, is being questioned about Tiktok’s relationship with the Chinese state.
He is expected to answer what kind of information Tiktok collects from its users and how the information is used.
Chew will refute the suspicions. For years, Tiktok has denied passing on the information it collects about its users.
In the United States, the administration demands either selling or banning Tiktok, which it considers a security threat. Tiktok is owned by the Chinese company Bytedance.
Previously, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives has given its support to a bill that would allow Tiktok to be banned in the United States. The bill requires the approval of the entire House of Representatives and the Senate.
Tiktok’s connection to the Chinese government has raised security concerns in Western countries for years.
Among others, the United States, Canada, Denmark and the European Commission have banned the use of Tiktok on official phones.
In Finland, too, the Government advises to remove the application from their devices.
Source: Reuters
You can discuss the topic on 24.3. until 11 p.m.
Also listen to the Uutispodcast episode about Tiktok (29 August 2022):