TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is set to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday, his first appearance …
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Watch: TikTok CEO testifies before Congress
19 responses to “Watch: TikTok CEO testifies before Congress”
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The PRC Is a Significant and Growing National Security Threat
According to the United States Intelligence Community’s Worldwide Threat Assessment for 2019, “China presents a persistent cyber espionage threat and a growing attack threat to our core military and critical infrastructure systems.” In particular, the DNI stated that “China remains the most active strategic competitor responsible for cyber espionage against the US Government, corporations, and allies,” and expressed concern “about the potential for Chinese intelligence and security services to use Chinese information technology firms as routine and systemic espionage platforms against the United States and allies.” Moreover, the Director of the FBI has stated that “[t]he greatest long-term threat to our nation’s information and intellectual property, and to our economic vitality, is the counterintelligence and economic espionage threat from China.”
One of the tools that the PRC uses to further its goals is bulk data collection. “The PRC Government has engaged in data collection on a massive scale across multiple domains as a means of generating information to enhance state security—and the political security of the CCP.” These large data sets “can reveal patterns and trends in human behavior, providing a ‘pattern of life’ that can be used to facilitate intelligence and surveillance targeting, particularly when aggregated with other data sets.” And the PRC is specifically “building massive databases of American’s personal information,” as part of a “tactic used by the Chinese government to further its intelligence-gathering and to understand more about who to target for espionage, whether electronically or via human recruitment.”Chinese Companies Are Not Purely Private, and Are Subject to Intrusive Laws Compelling Their Cooperation with Intelligence Agencies
The PRC exercises “authority and supervision over nominally private or non-governmental organizations,” including through Party Committees or Corporate CCP Committees at those entities. “Within private enterprises, the Party Committee implements CCP’s policies” and are a “source of political pressure across the boardroom.”
Additionally, the PRC Government has enacted several laws increasing its influence “overall Chinese companies, and citizens[.]” Notably, in 2017 the PRC enacted the National Intelligence Law, which “obliges individuals, organizations, and institutions to assist Public Security and State Security officials in carrying out a wide array of intelligence work.” The law expressly “permits Chinese intelligence institutions to request citizens and organizations to provide necessary support, assistance, and cooperation,” as well as “take control of an organization’s facilities, which includes communications equipment.” Other PRC laws likewise require cooperation by company network operators. Due to the lack of an independent judiciary in the PRC, there is no meaningful legal recourse for companies to challenge orders or requests from PRC intelligence or security agencies.ByteDance Is Subject to Significant CCP Influence
TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, Ltd., has its headquarters in Beijing and was founded in 2012 by entrepreneur Zhang Yiming. “ByteDance has significant and close ties to the CCP which could potentially be leveraged to further their agenda and exact pressure on ByteDance.” In April 2018, the CCP forced ByteDance to shutdown one of its other platforms, and Mr. Yiming issued a public apology in which he pledged to cooperate with and elevate official CCP media. (quoting Mr. Yiming’s apology as stating that “I am responsible because I failed to live up to the guidance and expectations supervisory organs have demanded all along,” and “[o]ver the past few years, the regulatory authorities have provided us with much guidance and assistance, but in our hearts we failed to properly understand and recognise [their demands]”). Following this public atonement, ByteDance underwent organizational restructuring with CCP infrastructure now built into it.
Since then, ByteDance has hosted several CCP-themed events at the company, and overall has demonstrated its commitment to CCP directives. ByteDance has also signed an official cooperation agreement with a PRC security agency:
On April 25, 2019, ByteDance signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the Ministry of Public Security's Press and Publicity Bureau in Beijing “aiming to give full play to the professional technology and platform advantages of Toutiao and Tiktok in big data analysis,” strengthen the creation and production of “public security new media works,” boost “network influence and online discourse power,” and enhance “public security propaganda, guidance, influence, and credibility,” among other aspects.
formulate strategies to address the threat posed by China, including the CCP’s “use of political influence, information operations, censorship, and propaganda to undermine democratic
institutions[,]” and the “use of economic tools, including market access and investment to gain access to sensitive United States industries.” Congress also directed the Secretary of Commerce to provide detailed reporting “on foreign direct investment transactions made by entities of the [PRC] in the United States.” Moreover, ByteDance appears to censor political content that is critical of China’s government or policies.TikTok’s U.S. Operations, Including Its Mass Collection of Data on U.S. Users
ByteDance owns the international social media application TikTok, which includes approximately 30 million monthly active U.S. users. When a user signs up for a TikTok account, they agree to TikTok’s Terms of Service, including the Privacy Policy. Under this Privacy Policy, TikTok collects a massive amount of user data, including:
1) registration information, such as age, username and password, language, andemail or phone number
2) profile information, such as name, social media account information, and profile image
3) user-generated content, including comments, photographs, videos, and virtual item videos that you choose to upload or broadcast on the platform
4) payment information, such as PayPal or other third-party payment information (where required for the purpose of payment)
5) phone and social network contacts (names and profiles)
6) opt-in choices and communication preferences
7) information in correspondence users send to TikTok
8) information sent by users through surveys or participation in challenges, sweepstakes, or contests such as gender, age, likeness, and preferences.
TikTok also “collects data on how the application including user behavior such as browsing and search history and technical and network details such as Internet protocol (IP) address, geolocation-related data, unique device identifiers, and cookies,” as well as “information from third parties, such as advertising and analytics partners.” Id. In other words, TikTok collects a tremendous amount of user data, “allow[ing] a very detailed picture of an individual user to be created,” Commerce Decision Memo, at 15, for example because TikTok automatically tracks and collects data on the location of every TikTok user in the United States.Source: DOJ's Memorandum in opposition to TikTok
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Dump them like a bad habit, will increase employment where these people have to leave the basement and see what the sky looks like and hear the sounds of the birds and children playing in the park. More to life than hanging on Tic Toc wasting your life away.
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They should have asked.. are you aware Darpa spent billions on “lifelog” a program developed to steal every bit of info on Americans but was thought to invasive so they renamed it “Facebook!” And created a fake origin story, complete with a fake “boy genius!”
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Look at all of the low brain hums with their signs. Social media junkies just salivating at the next challenge, perhaps they will jump out of a building, who knows. TT is owned by the CCP and is stealing data and manipulating already extremely stupid young people. I don’t expect extremely stupid people to see past their own selfish desires to make themselves look even more stupid on social media. People are dying because of these idiotic challenges and peoples property is being destroyed also. It isn’t funny, nor creative it’s malicious but then what do you expect from a regime that spread Covid and killed millions.
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Why is that when I clicked on the “Live Feed” it started at the Asian CA representative in pink (I don’t remember her name) then continued on with the majority of the room being empty as the next speakers went on till the end of the hearing, but then when I go rewind to the beginning of the non-live feed, It became obvious that I had heard most-if not all of these questions already until the Florida Representative (Ms Castor) begins speaking around 83mins into it, which coincidentally begins to explain the legislature that they’re suggesting we implement into law.
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It is never fair to consumers, because consumers do not have personal lawyers, monetary nor resources to prevent big companies from abuses.
Does Tik Tok benefit America or not? Does Tik Tok jeopardize America security? Is Tik Tok just another recycle posting or anything original ideas post? Congressmen and Congresswomen are not knowledgeable nor experience with technologies. Tik Tok has access to any devices, because it internet access. -
With the backwardness of our economy, increment in the price of gas, alarming rates of unemployment.i must confess our country have taken a wrong turns.vividly I don't know how else to carter for my expenses
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Almost all the questions poured on Chow could be reused to all big tech CEOs. Sounds like Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, etc are all as clean as Snow White. If you want to shut them down, find a better excuse.
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Adult men need to stop flirting young girls
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They claim it’s harmful for TikTok to collect our data –
But Meta collects our data and sells it.
They talked about TikTok not paying users for they data they collect –
Meta doesn’t either
They talked about harmful content-
But it wasn’t TikTok spreading the trend of eating Tide Pods.
They talk about kids spending too much time on TikTok-
But for years, kids have spent several hours a day on Facebook.
They make the point that there is never no end to the For You page –
But there’s no end to the FB timeline either.
This hearing is nothing but theater. They’ve already made their minds up, and the real issue is this:
Meta lobbies the gov and TikTok makes it impossible to control the flow of info.
VOTE THESE PEOPLE OUT! -
China is literally a bigger thereat than the Soviet Union was in the Cold War
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Why are we wasting our time with this? I'm sure another US company can make a short video media platform that our kids will embrace. Stop using TikTok and then the CCP won't get anymore data and TikTok and ByteDance won't get anymore advertising dollars from us. Clearly parents aren't doing their job in raising their kids by giving them cell phones with access to social media and other platforms that put them and our country at risk. It's our self-absorbed climate and constant need for attention that keeps TikTok and other suspect platforms in business. Parents, do your jobs and monitor your kids. The government shouldn't have to be a surrogate parent for our youth. Clearly, this guy is lying. He stumbles on his answers and can't give an honest answer as to if the CCP has access and influence to TikTok.
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It's so funny how they are worried about their children and looks like TikTok is the only problem. But do that threatened kids have parents? Finally we found who to blame.
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Actually like ToppBuzz App was killing the Lefts reputation and it went "under" then came TikTok another video app that hurts the Democrats more than it helps. It exposes the Lies of the Left. This is more about the Left not being able to hide there lies & corruption than it is about data. They got busted with Twitter files. Tik Tok is an app the US can't controll. So ban it! Trump tried the Dems lost their minds! Its hurting Biden so it needs to go that's all!
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Get rid of TikTok. It's a plague
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What about YouTube? There's a lot of misleading videos on here , clickbait videos , video's that have the same concerns as TikTok
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The CEO of Tik Tock repeatedly REPEATEDLY says that he does not agree with your CHARACTERIZATION –
Like the dims Characterization of payments to a part star ?????
or the 1/6 SELECT committee etc -
Please for the love of god please…. This isn’t about freedom of speech this app is a toxin that corrupts and kills our brain cells, the short burst repetitive videos will FRY your dopamine receptors
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"Keep Tik Tok"….because we are plebs who want to live in a surveillance state controlled by our masters.
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