Is TikTok a THREAT? - YouTube

- If you're a smartphone enthusiast,

you've probably heard about

big name Chinese phone manufacturers like ZTE and Huawei

being restricted from the US market.

So, it may not be terribly surprising

that a Chinese app has now come under fire as well.

I'm talking about none other than TikTok, the app best known

for poorly singing teenagers and viral dance offs.

(laughing, exclaiming)

But why is TikTok, of all things,

suddenly under so much scrutiny?

Well, certain US officials have described it

as a potential national security threat.

(silly music)

But how could that be?

(silly music)

Well, the reason the US and some of its allies

are so concerned about Chinese technology

is the possibility that back doors

could be built into Chinese-controlled software or hardware

to allow mass spying against Western citizens and interests.

And although Huawei, for example, is a private company,

they've faced criticism in the past

for getting too much support

from China's communist government,

leading some to worry that their communication technology

could be used for shady doings.

Now, TikTok is also owned

by a private Chinese company called ByteDance,

and, like Huawei, they're not officially

an arm of the government in Beijing.

But the concerns about undue influence

from Chinese authorities remain.

For example, China forced ByteDance to shut down

a different app centered around memes and videos in 2018,

simply because it didn't like the content.

ByteDance then issued a statement in which it attempted

to appease the Chinese communist party,

and promised to hire party members, as well as increased

the number of employees working as censors.

So it looks like fears that ByteDance

might end up becoming pressured

to be a tool of the Chinese government

aren't completely unfounded.

And while it's true that US tech companies

have gotten in hot water

with the American government before over content,

not to mention the NSA surveillance revelations

that came out some years back,

Chinese lack of data protection laws

or an independent judiciary with due process guarantees,

as well as China Internet security law,

which gives the government very broad powers

to collect data from tech companies,

has raised concerns that it would be

far easier for the Chinese communist party

to get its hands on any data it wants

from ByteDance and other domestic technology firms,

even if the data itself was collected

and stored outside of China,

as ByteDance claims is the case with TikTok.

But, of course, that's a lot of speculation.

Is this actually what's going on with TikTok?

Well, so far, there's no evidence

that the Chinese government has collected data en masse

from TikTok or its users.

And even if it did, it's important to look at

what kind of information they'd be getting.

TikTok does collect IP addresses and location data,

but lots of apps do the same thing.

Instead, it's far more likely

that more valuable information,

such as financial records and physical addresses,

would come from other sources,

such as security breaches of government agencies,

as well as the Credit Bureau leaks

that we all found out about in 2017.

But another potentially huge issue with TikTok

isn't related to data collection

or the use of the app as a way to hack phones or networks.

Other huge social media platforms,

namely Facebook and Twitter,

have faced criticism for being slanted politically,

or not doing enough to control the flow

of misinformation about sensitive topics.

And there's a fear that the Chinese government

is already using TikTok to control and spin conversations

about issues that people care about

by forcing ByteDance to, well, dance to its tune.

In 2019, there was a report

that TikTok moderators were being forced

to restrict negative comments about the Chinese system,

as well as content related to the Hong Kong protests and,

unsurprisingly, about the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989.

But, regardless of what TikTok

does or does not have the potential to become,

both the US army and Navy have banned the app,

and the State Department is said to be looking

at a nationwide prohibition.

India, which has also been

at loggerheads with China recently,

has already banned TikTok,

citing similar national security concerns.

I just wonder what will happen

if it does get banned in the US.

There's probably gonna be a lot of really upset Gen Z-ers.

But, instead of voicing their displeasure at the ballot box,

maybe they'll find a way to resurrect Vine.

I miss Vines.

I'm kidding, I don't miss Vines,

that was just in the script.

I never really got it. But I'm old.

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