TikTok is not handing over American users' data to China: CEO
Jul 02, 2022
Beijing [China], July 2 : TikTok, a 15-second video platform, has told US senators that it is taking all necessary steps to limit access to users' data from outside the United States, including by employees of its parent company, the Chinese group ByteDance.
In a letter addressed to the 9 lawmakers, the CEO of TikTok Shou Zi Chew on Thursday explained how the company would operate the app from servers controlled by Oracle, the US cloud computing giant.
He also reiterated a plan to store US users' personal information with Oracle, rather than on TikTok's servers.
"We know we are among the most scrutinized platforms from a security standpoint, and we aim to remove any doubt about the security of US user data," Chew said in the statement cited by The New York Times.
TikTok, which is highly popular for its short and viral meme-making videos, has been working to rebut concerns that it is a national security risk.
The short formate video platform remains under the scrutiny of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, a group of government agencies that vets foreign purchases of American companies.
The letter was written after BuzzFeed News reported that China-based employees of internet giant ByteDance have been repeatedly accessing the data about TikTok users in the USA market last month, The New York Post reported.
After the report, nine Republican senators including Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee and John Thune of South Dakota asked TikTok about its practices.
Last month, a member of the Federal Communications Commission also said Apple and Google should remove TikTok from their app stores, as per reports.
India banned TikTok in 2020 over national security issues.
Later in September, the Government of India further blocked 118 Chinese mobile apps stating that they are "prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of the state and public order".
However, China opposed India's decision to continue the ban on Chinese mobile apps and said the action is in violation of the World Trade Organisation's non-discriminatory principles.
