Why are governments banning TikTok? And why in the US does not everyone agree? Report Nyt
TikTok Q&A in New York Times In-Depth
In recent months, lawmakers in the US, Europe and Canada have stepped up efforts to restrict access to TikTok, the wildly popular short-form video app owned by Chinese company ByteDance, citing security threats. writes the New York Times .
The White House told federal agencies on Monday they had 30 days to remove the app from government devices. Canada and the executive arm of the European Union also recently banned the app from official devices.
A House committee on Wednesday backed an even more extreme step, voting in favor of a law that would allow President Joe Biden to ban TikTok from all devices nationwide.
That's why the pressure has been increased on TikTok, which claims to be used by more than 100 million Americans.
Why are governments banning TikTok?
It all depends on China. Western lawmakers and regulators have increasingly expressed concern that TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, could put sensitive user data, such as location information, into the hands of the Chinese government. They referred to laws that allow the Chinese government to secretly request data from Chinese companies and citizens for intelligence-gathering operations. They also fear that China could use TikTok content flags to spread disinformation.
TikTok has long denied those allegations and has tried to distance itself from ByteDance.
Have some countries banned TikTok?
India banned the platform in mid-2020, costing ByteDance one of its biggest markets, as the government cracked down on 59 Chinese-owned apps, claiming they were secretly transmitting user data to servers outside the country. India.
What's going on with the bans in the US?
Since November, more than two dozen states have banned TikTok on government-issued devices, and many colleges, such as the University of Texas at Austin, Auburn University and Boise State University, have blocked it from networks Campus Wi-Fi. The application has already been banned for three years on US government devices used by the Army, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard. But the bans typically don't extend to personal devices. And students often switch to cellular data to use the app.
Is Congress Trying to Ban TikTok?
Some members would like to do that. This week, the House Foreign Affairs Committee voted to pass a bill that could give a president the authority to ban the platform entirely. (Courts had previously stopped an attempt by the Trump administration to do so).
In January, a Republican Senator, Josh Hawley of Missouri, introduced a bill to ban TikTok for all Americans after pushing for a measure, passed in December as part of a spending package, that banned TikTok on all devices. issued by the federal government. Another bipartisan bill introduced in December also aimed to ban TikTok and target all similar social media companies from countries such as Russia and Iran.
What is the Biden administration doing?
It has been largely silent, although the White House indicated an ongoing review just this week, in response to questions about TikTok. TikTok has had confidential talks with the administration's review board, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, for years to answer questions about TikTok and ByteDance's dealings with the Chinese government and how they handle user data. TikTok said it had received next to nothing since it submitted a 90-page proposal in August outlining how it intended to operate in the United States, taking into account national security concerns.
Can the government ban an app?
Most of the existing TikTok bans have been applied to governments and universities that have the power to keep an app off their devices or networks.
A broader government-imposed ban that prevents Americans from using an app that allows them to share their opinions and art could be challenged on First Amendment grounds, said Caitlin Chin, a researcher at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. After all, a large number of Americans, including elected officials and major news organizations like The New York Times and The Washington Post , produce videos on TikTok.
"In democratic systems, the government cannot ban freedom of speech or expression without a very strong reason, and it's not clear whether we already have that," Chin said.
What if I already have TikTok on my phone when the ban is issued?
The exact mechanism for banning an app on privately owned phones is unclear. Chin said the US could block TikTok from selling ads or updating its systems, effectively rendering it non-functional.
Apple and other app store companies block downloads of apps that no longer work. They also ban apps with inappropriate or illegal content, said Justin Cappos, a professor at New York University's Tandon School of Engineering.
They also have the ability to remove apps installed on a user's phone. “Usually this doesn't happen,” he added.
More determined users could also oppose a ban by refusing to upgrade their phones, 'which is a very bad idea', said Professor Cappos.
What was the response from TikTok?
TikTok called the bans "political theater" and slammed lawmakers for trying to censor Americans. “The fastest and most comprehensive way to resolve any TikTok-related national security issue is for CFIUS to adopt the proposed settlement that we have been working on with them for nearly two years,” TikTok spokeswoman Brooke Oberwetter said in a statement. . Separately, TikTok has been trying to win allies and recently traveled to Washington to meet with influential think tanks, public interest groups and lawmakers to push the plan it presented to the government.
How are TikTok's privacy and security issues different than those of Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter?
Chinese ownership seems to be the main problem. Critics of efforts to ban the platform have pointed out that all social networks engage in rampant data collection of their users.
Fight for the Future, a non-profit digital rights group, recently launched a #DontBanTikTok campaign with the goal of redirecting the attention of lawmakers on TikTok towards creating data and privacy laws that apply to all Big Tech companies.
“The general consensus from the privacy community is that TikTok collects a lot of data, but it's not outside the amount of data other apps collect,” said Robyn Caplan, senior research scientist at the Data & Society Research Institute.
Who else opposes the ban?
The American Civil Liberties Union sent a letter to the House Foreign Affairs Committee this week protesting the proposed law, saying it would violate Americans' First Amendment rights.
Of course, millions of Americans, digital creators, and marketers wouldn't look kindly on the platform's demise, and blocking a popular app could create a political backlash among young people.
What can I do now to protect my data if I use TikTok?
To protect your privacy on TikTok, you can adopt the same practices you use to protect yourself on other social media platforms. Among them, don't give apps permission to access your location or contacts.
It is also possible to watch TikTok videos without opening an account.
What are the other approaches besides the ban?
Administration may approve TikTok's plan to operate in the US. There is also the possibility that lawmakers will force ByteDance to sell TikTok to an American company, which almost happened in 2020.
(Excerpt from the foreign press review by eprcomunicazione )
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/perche-i-governi-stanno-vietando-tiktok-e-perche-negli-usa-non-tutti-sono-daccordo-report-nyt/ on Sat, 11 Mar 2023 07:11:39 +0000.