Get Instant Loan up to ₹10 Lakh!
‘No evidence’, TikTok CEO calls India’s ban ‘hypothetical and theoretical’
India imposed a nationwide ban on TikTok and dozens of other Chinese apps, including the messaging app WeChat, in 2020 over privacy and security concerns.
Amid growing security concerns and potential Chinese government influence over TikTok, CEO Shou Zi Chew testified before the US Congress on Thursday. He faced hostile questioning for around four hours from the House Energy and Commerce Committee, according to the news agency ANI.
“The TikTok app, which is owned by the Chinese technology company Bytedance, has long maintained that it does not share data with the Chinese government and it doesn't pose a risk to its 150 million users in the U.S. nor share their data with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP),” Chew stressed.
During questioning, US Lawmaker Debbie Lesko quoted India and several other countries that have recently banned TikTok in some form.
"This (TikTok) is a tool which is ultimately under the control of the Chinese government and screams out with national security concerns Mr Chew, how can all of these countries and our FBI director be wrong? Lesko asked.
In response to the question, he called the risk ‘hypothetical and theoretical’. "I have not seen any evidence.” However, the Congresswoman again reiterated and stressed on India banned TikTok, ANI reported.
"India banned TikTok in 2020. On March 21, a Forbes article revealed how data of Indian citizens who used TikTok remained accessible to employees at the company and its Beijing-based parent. A current TikTok employee told Forbes that nearly anyone with basic access to company tools can easily look up the closest contact and other sensitive information about any user," Lesko informed her colleagues.
The TikTok CEO replied, “This is a recent article; I have asked my team to look into it. We have rigorous data access protocols. There is no such thing as anybody can access the tools. So, I disagree with a lot of the conclusions.”
India imposed a nationwide ban on TikTok and dozens of other Chinese apps, including the messaging app WeChat, in 2020 over privacy and security concerns.
The ban came shortly after a clash between Indian and Chinese troops at LAC that killed 20 Indian soldiers and injured dozens. The companies were given a chance to respond to questions on privacy and security requirements but the ban was made permanent in January 2021.
"You damn well know that you cannot protect the data and security of this committee or the 150 million users of your app because it is an extension of the CCP," Lawmaker Kat Cammack of Florida told Chew after playing a threatening video that was still on the platform more than a month after it had been posted, despite community guidelines barring violence or threats.
Hours before the hearing, China repeatedly said it wouldn't oppose any forced sale of TikTok, with its Commerce Ministry saying that any sale would involve the export of Chinese technology and must be approved by the Chinese government, as per ANI reports.
TikTok is already banned on federal government devices, including military devices, and a growing number of states in the US are banning it on state government devices.
(With ANI inputs)
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
MoreLess
First Published:24 Mar 2023, 08:03 AM IST
- Top Gainers
- Top Losers
- 52 Week High