Is TikTok a Threat to National Security?
The Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok has snowballed to be one of the most popular apps within the last several years. It serves as a haven where users can make viral memes, trends, political satire, and partake in activism, and connect with others. However, it has not been without its controversies. TikTok’s large following of one billion active users has created an increase of concerns for politicians about national security.
China and the United States (U.S.) are in a technological trade war for ownership of TikTok’s valuable algorithm. Policymakers are concerned that TikTok’s parent company ByteDance could be forced to hand over TikTok’s U.S. user data to the Chinese government.
There has been an ongoing debate on whether TikTok should be banned in the U.S. due to it being a Chinese-owned app and could be a potential threat to national security. In August 2020, U.S. President Trump signed an executive order for TikTok to be banned within the next 45 days. American politicians hoped that the order would urge ByteDance to sell TikTok to U.S. companies. However, ByteDance found a way to contest Trump’s executive order by allowing U.S. investors such as Walmart, Oracle, and Microsoft to only own portions of the TikTok franchise.
According to the latest TikTok user statistics, the most commonly viewed content categories are performance, entertainment, dance, beauty, and comedy, etc. Although many people are suspicious of TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, they should not be so quick to accuse the Chinese government of stealing user information. “It’s right to be suspicious of the Chinese,” said James Lewis, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a security think tank. “But I’m not sure TikTok is a good intelligence tool for them.”
Several security flaws have been found in TikTok. This is mainly because TikTok is a newer app and hackers have more opportunities to extract information. Newer social media apps are more likely to have greater security flaws because of the lack of testing and research that is needed to prepare for real-world attacks. Despite the common security flaws, TikTok’s security team is devoted to the safety of its users. To ensure users that their information is safe, TikTok hired an American CEO in 2020 and announced that they have “never provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would we do so if asked.”
Donald Trump and his team regularly targeted Chinese-owned companies. Justin Sherman, a member of the Cyber Statecraft Initiative at the Atlantic Council, stated that Trump’s attacks “are politically motivated on an application because it’s a Chinese-owned app” and that Trump’s team is “less focused on a longer-term strategy.”
Although TikTok is criticized, I do not believe that it poses a major security threat to its users. Politicians’ focus should not be to ban TikTok but to find more ways for TikTok to ensure the safety of user data. Unlike other apps, TikTok offers the option of creativity to its users. TikTok is a great platform for creators to spread humor, love, and values. In order to help people connect with others, apps like TikTok need to remain available to users in the U.S.
