Chinese TikTok Owners Sell Their Shares
According to a source close to the business, the Biden administration is considering banning TikTok in the U.S. if the video-sharing app’s Chinese proprietors refuse to sell their shares in it.
However, the source warned that the administration’s action was not a final directive. TikTok has been in talks with US government leaders for several years.
The administration’s demand represents a major shift in the United States’ attitude toward Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., the company that controls the popular app.
The White House and Treasury both refused to respond.
“If protecting national security is the goal, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: new ownership would not insert any new limitations on data flows or access,” a TikTok representative said in a statement. The most effective method to handle national security issues is through transparent, US-based protection of US user data and systems, as well as rigorous third-party surveillance, vetting, and verification, which we are already adopting.”
Any sale by ByteDance would require Chinese official approval.
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According to a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, the US has failed to provide any proof that TikTok presents a danger to its national security.
“The U. S. side should stop spreading inaccurate information about data security, stop unjustly suppressing the affected businesses, and create an environment that is open, fair, just, and nondiscriminatory for businesses from all over the world to operate and invest in the U.S. S. During a typical news briefing, Wang Wenbin said.”
Biden signed legislation prohibiting TikTok on government devices into law at the end of December.
Republicans have frequently criticized the Biden administration’s treatment of TikTok security issues. Last month, some Republican opponents tried to link the app to the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that made its way across the United States.
Opponents of a possible TikTok ban argue that blocking the app from US phones is not a complete answer to data security concerns.
During his final year in office, Donald Trump attempted to prohibit TikTok uploads, but the Commerce Dep. eventually relented after a complaint.
