The US government has again identified TikTok as a potential national security risk. “We have concerns about data collection from Americans and potential national security risks,” White House spokeswoman Karen Jean-Pierre said yesterday, referring to efforts to ban TikTok in the United States.
The US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee has now introduced a bill that would allow President Joe Biden to ban TikTok in the US. “TikTok is the Chinese Communist Party’s modern-day Trojan horse used to monitor and exploit Americans’ personal information,” said the committee’s chairman, Republican Representative Michael McCaul.
However, the proposal is not yet a law. It must first be voted on in the plenary session of Parliament before being submitted to the Senate.
TikTok sees freedom of expression in danger
TikTok said such a law would have a significant negative impact on freedom of expression for the millions of Americans who use TikTok.
The White House banned the social media app, which is owned by a Chinese company, from government phones on Monday. Similar prohibitions apply to members of the House of Representatives and employees. Many states and the US military have also issued similar regulations in the past.
Beijing criticized the ban. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said the United States should “end the unwarranted suppression of relevant companies and create an open, fair and non-discriminatory environment for companies from all over the world.”
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