Staff Reports
During a Monday appearance on CNBC, Democratic Representative Ro Khanna of California shared his thoughts on the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok. He stated that the app should be sold to an American company because of the millions of young people using it and the serious worries about the data being collected and potentially manipulated.
The app is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese firm that mandates its staff to attend regular meetings to learn about the Communist Party of China’s policies. At a hearing in September, the company’s leaders declined to cease transmitting data to China, where ByteDance’s employees are said to have access to it.
On Saturday, the US Air Force brought down a Chinese surveillance balloon near the coast of South Carolina. Despite China’s claim that it was a non-military meteorological research platform, the balloon traveled over states that contain bases for intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and strategic bombers such as the B-2 Spirit. Furthermore, another balloon was reported to be flying over Latin America on Friday.
Following these incidents, Republican Governor Greg Abbott of Texas imposed a ban on Monday on TikTok and several other apps with ties to China from government-owned devices. He deemed the apps a danger to security as they collect data from users’ devices. The House of Representatives and Democratic Governor Laura Kelly of Kansas also imposed restrictions on the Chinese-owned social media platform.
A representative for TikTok expressed disappointment regarding the bans, asserting that they do not contribute to enhancing cybersecurity and will result in unintended consequences such as hindering universities from exchanging information, attracting students, and creating communities around athletic teams, student organizations, campus publications, and similar entities.
Overall, it is clear that there are many concerns regarding the security risks associated with the use of TikTok and other apps owned by Chinese companies. Representative Ro Khanna believes that the app should be sold to an American company in order to protect users’ data and ensure that it is not being manipulated. It remains to be seen what steps will be taken in order to address these issues.
The preceding article is a summary of an article that originally appeared on The Daily Caller
