Should TikTok Users Be Worried About Fresh Call To Ban The App
Once again, TikTok finds itself under scrutiny, facing a potential ban in the United States. While legitimate threats to the platform's continued service in the west have become rare over the past year, the ubiquitous video-sharing app is now getting new public and political pressure over concerns that it poses national security risks to U.S. citizens. Understandably, the numerous accusations could give some users pause.
The central issue with TikTok's relationship with the U.S. government is that its parent company, ByteDance, has close ties to the Chinese government. TikTok, like every social platform, collects tons of user data to generate revenue through advertisements or to dial in the specificity of primary app functions such as the For You page. U.S. politicians opposed to the platform fear that information is also being used nefariously by the government of China and have launched several attempts at getting it removed from the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Related: How To Change Your Video Privacy Settings On TikTok
The latest high-profile call to ban TikTok comes from Republican Federal Communications Commission Commissioner Brendan Carr. In a letter penned to Apple and Google (then subsequently shared on Twitter), Carr calls TikTok "sheep's clothing," as he explains that it's genuinely a veiled attempt by the Chinese government to surveil U.S. citizens. CNBC reports Carr's letter was inspired by an investigation from BuzzFeed News that revealed audio from dozens of TikTok internal meetings. Employees confirmed user data is visible to ByteDance staff in China.
This is one of those complicated scenarios where reality is practically dictated by perception. Even as recently as Oct. 2021, TikTok execs have
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