{"id":104852,"title":"TikTok parent ByteDance has admitted that staff tracked two journalists’ locations.","publisher":"Share Talk","author":"sharetalk","published":"2022-12-23T11:25:27+00:00","modified":"2022-12-23T11:25:27+00:00","canonical_url":"https://www.share-talk.com/tiktok-parent-bytedance-has-admitted-that-staff-tracked-two-journalists-locations/","markdown_url":"https://www.share-talk.com/tiktok-parent-bytedance-has-admitted-that-staff-tracked-two-journalists-locations.md","json_url":"https://www.share-talk.com/tiktok-parent-bytedance-has-admitted-that-staff-tracked-two-journalists-locations.json","category":"B2B","categories":["B2B","Business & Support Services","Technology","Technology, Media & Telecoms"],"tags":["App","ByteDance","china","data","IP addresses","journalist","protection","sharing","TikTok","US Congress","video"],"featured_image":"https://i0.wp.com/www.share-talk.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Stencil-Google-Chrome-2023-04-19-at-2.47.43-PM.jpeg?fit=1231%2C615&quality=89&ssl=1","format":"news","language":"en-GB","content":"Employees at TikTok’s parent company ByteDance were fired for improperly accessing data from two journalists’ accounts. This raises concerns about how user information is managed.\n\nByteDance acknowledged the breaches in an email to employees. The employees had looked at the IP addresses of users gained via the video-sharing app while investigating information leaks.\n\nAfter the October allegations, four employees were fired in China and two in the US.\n\nhttps://twitter.com/Share_Talk/status/1605236913182572546?s=20\n\nErich Anderson, TikTok’s general counsel, stated that it is a standard practice for companies to have an audit team authorized to investigate violations of the code of conduct.\n\nHe added that “In this instance, individuals misused their authority in order to access TikTok user information.”\n\nThe breaches for TikTok mark a new chapter in a long-running saga over its handling of user data. Many US states have banned the app from government devices because of security concerns.\n\nThis week’s US Congress could impose a ban on all US government employees. There is increasing concern that ByteDance might hand over information from the app to China.\n\nTikTok claimed it is developing more stringent data protection policies but admitted that European users could have their information.\n\nDue to fears, the UK’s parliamentary accounts were also shut down earlier in the year.\n\nRandall Lane, a chief content officer at Forbes, stated that this was a direct attack on the idea and importance of a free press in a functioning democracy."}