In an unexpected revelation, TikTok has conceded that some data belonging to its US users is housed in China, despite previous implications that all data was contained within US-based servers.
TikTok, owned by China and globally recognized as one of the most rapidly expanding social media applications, acknowledged in a letter on Thursday that “certain creator data” is being stored in China.
This disclosure arises amidst heightened public examination of TikTok from both the US and Europe, following apprehensions related to national security because of its affiliation with China’s ByteDance.
In its letter, TikTok explained that it categorizes creators as users who engage in a commercial partnership with the company. This includes influencers who produce sponsored content for the video-sharing platform.
The company further noted that these individuals’ contracts and “associated documents” are maintained outside of the United States, as detailed in a letter to two US senators.
Forbes magazine, referring to internal sources, reported on Thursday that creators’ details such as tax forms and social security numbers are housed in China.
Responding to the disclosure, a company representative stated, “TikTok has not been asked for this data by the Chinese government or the [Chinese Communist Party]. TikTok has not provided such data to the Chinese government or CCP, nor would TikTok do so.”
Concerns over the potential for the Chinese government to access data have been amplified due to the country’s national security laws, which permit any Chinese company to be compelled to conduct surveillance on its customers at the behest of local authorities.
US Senators Marsha Blackburn and Richard Blumenthal expressed grave concern in a statement, stating, “We are extremely alarmed that TikTok is housing Americans’ personal, private data within the Chinese government’s reach.
“TikTok’s response unambiguously indicates that despite TikTok’s misleading public relations claims, American data remains vulnerable to Beijing’s widespread and invasive surveillance systems.”
Western governments are apprehensive that data collected by TikTok from their citizens’ devices can be freely scrutinized by Chinese operatives seeking valuable espionage targets.
Earlier this year, TikTok was prohibited on British government officials’ devices, with former Conservative Party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith labelling the app a “Chinese government data harvester.”
In a similar vein, Alicia Kearns, the chairwoman of the foreign affairs committee who has faced Chinese sanctions for voicing concerns over the country’s human rights abuses, cautioned that TikTok could allow Beijing to “exploit our weaknesses.”
TikTok has consistently maintained that it is not collaborating with Beijing.
In May, TikTok initiated a lawsuit to prevent the US state of Montana from banning individuals from downloading the app on their personal phones.
The unparalleled ban, set to be enforced next year, infringes upon Americans’ freedom of speech rights, as per TikTok’s legal submissions. TikTok stated that recent prohibitions were “misguided and based on fundamental misconceptions.”
Furthermore, five influencers have filed a lawsuit, asserting that Governor Greg Gianforte’s TikTok prohibition represents an illegal “prior restraint on expression that violates the First Amendment” of the US Constitution.
