ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, has denied speculation about the sale of the popular video-sharing platform amidst the possibility of a ban in the United States. President Biden recently signed a bill requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok by January 19, 2025. The company responded to media reports suggesting a potential sale by stating that they have no plans to sell TikTok. This comes as ByteDance faces the mandate to either divest the firm or face a ban in the US.
The denial from ByteDance came in response to an article by The Information, which claimed that ByteDance was exploring the possibility of selling a majority stake in TikTok’s US business. The article also stated that the sale would not include the video recommendation algorithm and that ByteDance preferred to sell TikTok to businesses outside the tech industry.
President Biden’s bill sets a deadline of January 19, 2025, for the sale of TikTok, just before the next US president is sworn in. However, the president has the authority to extend the deadline by a maximum of three months to facilitate the completion of the deal.
This is not the first time that TikTok has faced challenges in the United States. Former President Donald Trump issued an executive order to ban the app in 2020, but courts later sided with TikTok, stating that the ban violated due process and the right to free expression. In response to the recent bill, TikTok called it “unconstitutional” and expressed its intention to challenge it in court.
One of the key concerns driving the attempt to ban TikTok in the US is its alleged connection with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Experts argue that this creates a risk of private data belonging to American citizens ending up in the hands of the Chinese regime, which could be used for nefarious purposes and harm national security. TikTok, on the other hand, insists that it has invested billions of dollars to keep US data safe and free from outside influence and manipulation. However, Chinese law requires Chinese companies, including ByteDance, to hand over data on American users to Beijing when requested.
To address security concerns, TikTok has proposed storing data of Americans at Texas-based Oracle. However, some lawmakers remain skeptical, arguing that this initiative would still allow TikTok’s algorithm, source code, and development activities to remain in China and subject to the Chinese government’s exploitation.
Former employees have also raised concerns about TikTok’s data practices. Evan Turner, a former senior data scientist at TikTok, revealed that he was initially assigned to a ByteDance executive in Beijing and later reassigned to a US-based manager in Seattle. However, he continued working with the Beijing executive and was involved in emailing spreadsheets containing American user data to ByteDance’s employees in Beijing.
The potential cybersecurity risks posed by TikTok have also been a topic of discussion among military experts. Army Gen. Paul M. Nakasone highlighted the app’s large user base and its potential for foreign nations to conduct information operations and surveillance. John F. Plumb, assistant secretary of defense for space policy, also pointed out China’s prolific cyber intrusions and their potential impact on US security.
If a sale of TikTok were to occur, major US tech giants such as Google, Meta (formerly Facebook), Microsoft, and Amazon could be potential buyers. However, the legal positions of these companies in taking over TikTok remain unclear due to ongoing antitrust lawsuits.
As the future of TikTok in the United States hangs in the balance, it is clear that concerns over data security and potential foreign influence continue to shape the conversation. The outcome of this situation will not only impact ByteDance and TikTok but also have broader implications for the relationship between technology, national security, and privacy in the digital age.
