The popular application among young people around the world is in the sights of Americans. A bill that could lead to a total ban on TikTok in the United States hit a major milestone on Wednesday in the United States Congress. The text, carried by an elected Republican, would give President Joe Biden the power to ban TikTok outright. It was passed by the powerful House Foreign Affairs Committee this morning, thanks solely to Republican votes.
Many US elected officials consider the viral short-form video platform a national security threat. They, along with a growing number of Western governments, fear that Beijing could access user data around the world through this app, something TikTok has denied for years.
Personal data versus freedom of expression
“Make no mistake, TikTok is a real security threat,” warned Republican Michael McCaul, author of the text. “Anyone who has downloaded TikTok onto their device has offered the Chinese Communist Party a backdoor to all of their personal information,” he said in a statement. A ban on the application would be tantamount to “gagging freedom of expression” for millions of Americans, protested TikTok in return, which claims to have more than a hundred million users in the United States.
To pass, the text must now be voted on during a plenary session of the House of Representatives and then the Senate. Democratic President Joe Biden has the right of veto. However, as of Monday night, the White House has already ordered federal agencies to ensure TikTok is off their smartphones within 30 days, under a law ratified by Joe Biden in early January.