TikTok could possibly be banned in US if Chinese language homeowners don’t promote stake: report

The Biden administration has demanded TikTok’s Chinese language homeowners divest their stake within the common video app or face a doable US ban, the Wall Street Journal reported, in accordance with folks conversant in the matter.

The transfer could be essentially the most dramatic in a series of recent steps by US officials and legislators who’ve raised fears that TikTok’s US user data could be passed on to China’s government. TikTok has greater than 100 million US customers.

The White Home declined to remark.

TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter mentioned in a press release to Reuters that “if defending nationwide safety is the target, divestment doesn’t remedy the issue: a change in possession wouldn’t impose any new restrictions on knowledge flows or entry.”

TikTok Chief Govt Shou Zi Chew is because of appear before Congress next week.

Any US ban would face vital authorized hurdles. The Trump administration sought in 2020 to ban TikTok however was stymied by a collection of court docket rulings.

TikTok and the Treasury-led Committee on Overseas Funding in the USA have been negotiating for greater than two years on data security requirements. TikTok mentioned it has spent greater than $1.5 billion on rigorous knowledge safety efforts and rejects spying allegations. The Wall Road Journal mentioned CFIUS made the sale demand not too long ago. A Treasury spokesperson declined to remark.

TikTok mentioned on Wednesday that “one of the simplest ways to deal with considerations about nationwide safety is with the clear, US-based safety of US consumer knowledge and techniques, with strong third-party monitoring, vetting, and verification.”