Tik Tok threatens national security in the United States!

Debate over TikTok's future has reached new heights after the Biden administration threatened to block the popular video-sharing app nationwide unless its Chinese owner committed to selling its stake in the company, TikTok confirmed to TIME. The recent divestment request was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

 The apparent warning from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) marks a significant escalation by White House officials in the long-running conversations between the company's Beijing-based owner Byte Dance and federal officials who say TikTok's links to China are possible. Security threats.

Why is the US banning TikTok?

The app has had more than 1 billion active users since its launch in 2016, including more than 100 million in the United States, but its growth comes amid concerns from federal officials and security experts that the Chinese Communist Party may be able to access sensitive data. Compiled by companies about Americans. As a Chinese company, Byte Dance is subject to national security laws that require it to turn over data to Chinese authorities upon request.

The biggest danger facing Tik Tok users:

“The biggest problem is that users are largely unaware of the real risks of foreign governments using their user data,” said Anton Dabra, executive director of the Johns Hopkins University Information Security Institute. “People will be upset about how breadcrumbs from mobile devices and other platforms can be used differently to threaten national security.”

The US government's reaction to TikTok's damage:

The push to ban TikTok in the US has largely led Republican lawmakers in Congress who fear Byte Dance will use user data to track browsing history and location and potentially fuel the spread of disinformation. "Anyone who downloads TikTok to their device is giving the Chinese Communist Party a backdoor to access all their personal information. It's a spy balloon in their phone," said Michael McCall, director of Dirk, the Republican from Saskatchewan, who sits in the House of Representatives. Committee on Foreign Affairs, sponsored the bill to ban TikTok. More Democrats who have not publicly expressed a desire to strengthen these security measures in the past are starting to speak out in support of them.

However, TikTok maintains that the CFIUS filtering order does not address security concerns. It does not solve the problem, and the change of ownership does not impose new restrictions on data flow or access.” “The best way to address national security concerns is to transparently protect US user data and systems on a US basis, with robust third-party monitoring, auditing, and verification already in place.”

 Will the CEO of TikTok tell us the truth? 

Amid mounting political pressure, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is set to testify at the Capitol Hill next week and will be grilled by lawmakers from both parties about the security risks posed by the app.

Users' reaction to the decision 

Users of the platform are worried about what a potential ban would mean for them, especially creators who live off TikTok Creator Fund payments and brand endorsements.

According to Forbes, high-earners on the platform can earn up to $250,000 from sponsored posts. "So who's going to tell the Biden administration that some of us have made professional jobs on TikTok, but if it's banned, there's really nothing going on?"