TikTok is still targeted in the United States. The Biden administration has threatened to ban the Chinese company ByteDance’s social network in the US if the owners do not sell their shares. But what numbers are we talking about? ByteDance shares are 60% owned by global investors, 20% by employees and 20% by their founders. That’s Washington’s intention. The Treasury-led United States Committee on Foreign Investments (CFIUS) unanimously recommended ByteDance to divest TikTok in 2020. Now we want to speed up the process.
The move, reported by the Wall Street Journal, will mark another point of conflict between the White House and the Chinese company, which appears to be another measure stemming from fears of US officials and lawmakers about user data held by the company. It can be handed over to the Chinese government. ByteDance’s app denies collecting more data than any other social media company and denies it has given Chinese authorities access to its users’ data. But it went even further: TikTok actually noted that the storage of user data does not take place in China, but in Singapore and Dublin in the US, where subscriber data is routed through cloud infrastructure managed by US company Oracle. . The company recently announced a project to protect users’ data on the Old Continent and has launched two new data centers in Ireland and Norway as part of the Clover project that will “create an autonomous European enclave.”
“A spy bubble on your phone”: why TikTok is scary
Assurances that do not address the concerns of Western states and institutions about the Chinese government’s proven presence in private companies. And given that China is viewed by the United States as a “hostile country” and a threat to national security, many U.S. senators and congressmen believe that ByteDance’s social network has been used by the Chinese government to spy on users, promote the interests of politicians, and interfere in other countries’ internal affairs. . In short, TikTok can act as a Trojan horse for potential espionage or sabotage activities, but it can also act to censor negative discussions of Chinese politics and promote a softer narrative on sensitive issues in Beijing, such as human rights abuses in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region. .
But any ban in the US would face significant legal hurdles. Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump, tried to ban TikTok in 2020 but was stopped by the courts. But the White House wants to consider all means at its disposal to protect the data of 100 million US users, while also responding to criticism by some Republicans. GOP members have pointed to the Biden administration for not taking a tough enough stance to address the alleged national security threat TikTok poses.
Social network executives do not support the US measure, as they believe the forced sale of shares will not eliminate the perceived security risk. For the Chinese company, the explanation is simple. In fact, ByteDance has revealed a total of $1.5 billion to be committed to a program to protect US users’ data and content from access or influence by the Chinese government.
TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter also defends and opposes what the Biden administration wants to do. “If the aim is to protect national security, disposal does not solve the problem – states Oberwetter in a note. The change of ownership does not impose new restrictions on data flows or access”.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is expected to appear before the US Congress next week. It will no doubt present the company’s complaints to match the Chinese government’s reactions. Beijing urges Washington to “end unwarranted attacks” on TikTok. “So far, the United States has not provided evidence that TikTok threatens US national security,” Wang Wenbin said at the daily briefing, urging Washington to “stop spreading false information and unreasonably suppressing affected companies.”
From TikTok comes press confirmation of the progress, as US officials urged him to leave Chinese holding company ByteDance to avoid a national ban. The game will now be played.
Source: Today IT
Karen Clayton is a seasoned journalist and author at The Nation Update, with a focus on world news and current events. She has a background in international relations, which gives her a deep understanding of the political, economic and social factors that shape the global landscape. She writes about a wide range of topics, including conflicts, political upheavals, and economic trends, as well as humanitarian crisis and human rights issues.
