As the Biden administration considers banning TikTok in the United States, its CEO, Shou Zi Chew, appeared before Congress on Thursday, March 23, 2023, to assure everyone that the app This does not pose a national security threat. Zi Chew, CEO of the social media platform since April 2021, testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committee:
“Let me be clear: ByteDance is not an agent of China or any other country.”
Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers said during the meeting that the social media platform had raised concerns about “the potential foreign influence on American lives.” Meanwhile, Frank Pallone, a Democrat, criticized TikTok for spreading misinformation and questioned the company’s data collection practices. The CEO responded by stating that TikTok is a Singaporean company managed by a Singaporean. He said that the app has more than 150 million members in the country who use it for various reasons such as entertainment and education.
Chew alludes to Project Texas, the organization’s effort to transfer all US data to local computers and delete all user data, in order to convince the Commission that national security is of paramount importance. important. He predicts that the work will be completed by the end of the year.
If you think the US needs a TikTok ban more than a comprehensive privacy law regulating data brokers, you don’t care about privacy, you just hate that a Chinese company built a dominant social media platforms.
– Eva (@evacide) March 23, 2023
What did the CEO of TikTok say to the House Energy and Commerce Committee?
The committee is concerned that many friends of TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, have connections to the Chinese Communist Party and have questioned Chew about his ties to it. Tony Cárdenas, a Democrat from California, even questioned whether TikTok was a Chinese business, while Florida’s Neal Dunn asked if they were “spying on American citizens.” Are not.
Shou Zi Chew told the panel during his testimony that Project Texas is a $1.5 billion security project that started last month to delete all user data and all data generated in USA was hosted on Oracle server in the cloud. He added, “
“The Chinese government cannot access or force access under this structure.”
In addition, anyone attempting to obtain information must first obtain permission from a U.S. Data Security Agency (USDS) employee. He also stated that the data will be protected by a firewall against unauthorized foreign access.
In addition to Project Texas, the CEO promised the panel:
“We have over 150 million users who love our platform, and we understand it’s our responsibility to protect them.”
He said the app will prioritize safety, especially for teenagers, and that the platform will remain a place of open speech “not manipulated by any government”. Furthermore, impartial third-party monitoring will ensure the fulfillment of security promises to improve openness.
Many TikTok users and organizations oppose the ban.
Users are sharing their thoughts on the ban as it hit the headlines this week. Many believe that the board is more concerned with successfully banning outside business than with security and privacy issues.
While TikTok’s fate remains uncertain, many data privacy and civil rights organizations have backed the ban. According to The Guardian, organizations such as Fight for the Future, the Center for Democracy and Technology and the American Civil Liberties Union have filed a statement claiming that the ban would violate their basic freedoms of speech.
Categories: Entertaintment
Source: HIS Education