Will TikTok Be Banned From The U.S.? Here's Where It Stands
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Loading... - Bridget Cook
- 08 Feb 2023
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Pressure is mounting from Republicans and some Democrats in Congress to pass a national ban on TikTok, the social video app owned by Chinese company ByteDance which has already been banned on federal devices and some college campuses over privacy concerns.
TikTok has faced calls for bans from critics who fear China may use the platform to access the data of American users.
Criticisms of the social platform intensified in the fall after reports revealed ByteDance repeatedly accessed U.S. user data and planned to use TikTok to track the location of specific American citizens (including Forbes journalists).
ByteDance previously denied it had used TikTok to “target” journalists or public figures, but after an internal investigation revealed employees tracked journalists covering the company, it fired its chief internal auditor who led the team orchestrating the surveillance.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who sponsored the ban on TikTok on federal devices which was signed into law in December, also introduced broader legislation on January 25 which would ban TikTok on all devices inside the U.S.
Republicans have long called for a ban, claiming TikTok would allow the Chinese government to spy on American citizens — but they’re now joined by a small number of Democrats, including Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, who urged Apple and Google last week to remove the app from their respective stores.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said TikTok poses "national security concerns" at a House Homeland Security Committee hearing in November.
President Joe Biden approved a ban on TikTok on devices owned by government agencies in December, following a wave of primarily Republican-led states who had passed similar measures. Read More…
