US lawmakers have passed a bill that would ban TikTok if its owner ByteDance doesn’t sell its stake in the App and now politicians and commentators are piling on the pressure for the UK to do the same.
This has become all the more pressing as geopolitical tensions between the US and her allies on the one side and China on the other have grown, with particular concern about Tik Tok’s use of consumers data and the access China might have to such data.
TikTok rejects these accusations and points to the steps it has taken through Project Texas to address the US’ concerns. It also points to the £10 billion it is investing in industry leading data safeguards in the UK including independent oversight of its data security, as a sign of how serious it is about protecting consumer data.
However, those such as noted China hawk Ian Duncan Smith have pointed to a ban of TikTok on official phones that shows the government considers the app a security risk and that it should therefore take the next logical step and ban it completely.
Government ministers have however demurred and said that the use of TikTok is a choice for individual members of the public.
But, it does seem as though the government is giving mixed signals on this issue. Security Minister Tom Tugendhat confirmed that the UK National Cyber Security Centre is looking into TikTok. Though the former head of the centre has said that the issue of its data security was a ‘red herring.’
According to this former head, the genuine concern should be over control of the algorithm that determines what the people in the West see on their phone. Not about data.
With these conflicting voices in the debate it is clear why there is pressure. Will the UK follow the US blindly or have its own nuanced discussion.
Vivek Rajkhowa 
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