United States: Zhou Si Chew, TikTok CEO, has stated that the platform’s ban in the US would cost small businesses and creators billions of dollars.
Zhou Si Chew said that the firm would apply legal prerogatives to avoid the ban after the House of Representatives passed a bill. Delegates voted to give ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, six months to sell its US assets or face a ban.
The bill passed 352-65 in a bipartisan vote, but some senators prefer a different strategy to controlling foreign-owned apps that increase safety concerns. US President Joe Biden said that he would sign the bill if it passed both chambers.
Jake Sullivan, White House National Security Adviser, cited that the data security concerns on TikTok and indicated that if the platform was owned by an American company, it would be better than if it were owned by China.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump objected that the ban would help social media platform Facebook. Earlier in his administration, former President Trump issued an executive action intended to ban TikTok and another popular Chinese app, WeChat. But it was later withdrawn.
According to the FBI and Federal Communications Commission, ByteDance may share user data with the authoritarian government in China, including browsing history, location, and biometric identifiers. TikTok’s critics also raised concerns that the Chinese government may demand access to its US users’ information, as well as use the app to spread propaganda.
TikTok denied the claims, saying it never did and would not do so if asked. Despite not finding any evidence that TikTok poses a threat to the US’s national security, China’s Foreign Ministry criticised the legislation.
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