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FBI director raises national security concerns about TikTok

23 Comments
By ERIC TUCKER

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“which allows them to manipulate content, and if they want to, to use it for influence operations.”

To say nothing of the way it is stupefying the young.

10 ( +10 / -0 )

Like US tech companies is not that dangerous,

https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-show-11631620739

once other country create product that even not requesting even user info, just ask user to create silly video reels than official empathizes fictitious fear and concern.

He also asserted that China could use the app to collect data on its users that could be used for traditional espionage operations.

Those data can be collected from even existing US Tech companies, remember previous election? Even in precise detail since US tech companies asking and really tracking their user.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jul/18/facebook-data-gathered-by-cambridge-analytica-accessed-from-russia-says-mp-damian-collins

1 ( +4 / -3 )

"All of these things are in the hands of a government that doesn’t share our values and that has a mission that's very much at odds with what’s in the best interests of the United States. "

As though the US government shares anyone's values... When he says the "best interests of the United States" he's not talking about the interests of US citizens, but about the interests of the power brokers, the cronies, and the state apparatus. Stop spying on internet users just as China does and maybe we'll listen to you.

5 ( +10 / -5 )

How afraid they are of China, pathetic circus.. lol..

-6 ( +5 / -11 )

Just ban it already. It's not like the free democratic countries don't have an alternative. Reciprocity is the only way to deal with China.

How afraid they are of China, pathetic

LOL, yes very pathetic indeed, why is China so afraid of google, meta and a plethora of other companies that don't even mandate government access to data.

3 ( +10 / -7 )

All it takes is for quick perusal of TikTok's privacy policy and terms of service - which apparently nobody has time for - to realize what you're getting yourself and your kids into when you sign up:

"Collect certain information about the device you use to access the platform, such as your IP address, user region, user agent, mobile carrier, time zone settings, identifiers for advertising purpose, model of your device, the device system, network type, device IDs, your screen resolution and operating system, app and file names and types."

TikTok also has access to users' keystrokes, which means they know every thing you type.

Before reading these t's&c's, most probably would have dismissed all of this as some sort of wild conspiracy theory. But when it comes to TikTok and Chinese Communist Party, turns out the difference between a conspiracy theory and the truth is around about 5 minutes.

3 ( +7 / -4 )

the Trump administration in 2020 threatened to ban the app within the U.S. and pressured ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S. company.

Not sure why the current US administration did not follow through on banning TikTok.

I regard my country's government as pathetic but even they were able to do something as basic as banning this useless app from China which can be used for collecting sensitive data from its users.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

To say nothing of the way it is stupefying the young.

So true! I will never let my kids use that app

3 ( +4 / -1 )

My kids don’t use this Trojan horse.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Seems the actual threat to America and its elections and free speech was pre-Elon Musk Twitter.

who would have thought the American one was a threat and the CCP one still hasn’t been banned either.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Concerned about China’s influence over TikTok, the Trump administration in 2020 threatened to ban the app within the U.S. and pressured ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S. company. 

This current administration, on the other hand, puts out a welcome mat to illegal immigrants, turns a blind eye to Russia invading Ukraine, and invites China literally inside of our homes.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

FBI director raises national security concerns about TikTok

Untrustable crime organization

Reminds me of a song

You got to be crazy, you gotta have a real need

You gotta sleep on your toes and when you're on the street

You got to be able to pick out the easy meat with your eyes closed

And then moving in silently, down wind and out of sight

You got to strike when the moment is right, without thinking

And after a while, you can work on points for style

Like the club tie, and the firm handshake

A certain look in the eye and an easy smile

You have to be trusted by the people that you lie to

So that when they turn their backs on you

You'll get the chance to put the knife in

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Just ban it already. It's not like the free democratic countries don't have an alternative. Reciprocity is the only way to deal with China.

They can't. The FBI doesn't make law and federal law markers can't restrict freedom of speech, even for foreign powers. It is easier to restrict the speech of the US Federal Govt than it is to restrict the speech of any individual or company in the world running their own platforms for US residents.

In the US, there are laws which are equal and one of them is the freedom to make bad choices under the guise of free speech.

The FBI warns the world all the time about computer and data security, but often, it is too hard for average people to understand the risks, much less implement the suggestions.

For example, how many people still use wifi and bluetooth without the added protection necessary for a secure connection? I bet of you ask, people would think both of those technologies are secure, though neither is. It has been known for decades that wifi shouldn't be trusted, though it wasn't released publicly until around 2018. Bet you didn't hear anything about that - or didn't notice. Convenience overrides security for most people. BTW, wifi-6, the newest version isn't any more secure. Always use a VPN with wifi and Bluetooth shouldn't be used at all. https://www.fbi.gov/video-repository/protected-voices-virtual-private-networks-083018.mp4/view

We've known about BT security flaws since 2005. Each release fixes the major flaws, but seems to introduce a few more. Web search for "Bluetooth security hacking" to be scared ... or just stop using it if you don't want to worry. That goes for most wireless keyboards and mice too, BTW.

The minimal security that wifi in homes should be setup with is to have all IoT/IoS things like streaming sticks, thermostats, home appliances, security cams, game consoles, tablets, phones and house guests on a different subnet than your normal house computers. That's the minimal security. Here's the link to that recommendation:

https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/portland/news/press-releases/tech-tuesday-internet-of-things-iot

These

2 ( +2 / -0 )

Not sure why the current US administration did not follow through on banning TikTok.

If you remember two Federal Courts ruled the Trump Administration had no authority to do so. The US tried to ban US transactions with Byte Dance, Tik Tok's parent citing the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a law that allows the US government to ban transactions between the US and foreign entities. Tik Tok filed for an injunction and it was granted in October 2021, with the judge in that case saying the Administration's proposed ban exceed the authority of the IEEPA. In a separate lawsuit by three Tik Tok content creators in a Pennsylvania Federal Court that court also issued a nationwide injunction against the impending Government ban of Tik Tok. Byte Dance was required to sell or spin off Tik Tok to an American owner by December 2021 but that date was never enforced by the Commerce Department.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

turns a blind eye to Russia invading Ukraine, 

Sigh. Somehow sending Ukraine over $40 billion in arms, providing training for their soldiers, cajoling allies to likewise send arms to Ukraine and train their soldiers, arrange with Eastern European nations to replace their Soviet era weapons with modern western weapons so the older Soviet era stuff could be given to Ukraine, provide Ukraine intelligence on the disposition of Russian forces, etc., is somehow construed to "turns a blind eye to Russia invading Ukraine". One wonders if the person who wrote that actually believes it? It is certainly not the case.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

 Somehow sending Ukraine over $40 billion in arms, 

It's just now hitting me how much money that is. For that amount, the US Govt could have bought Twitter.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Seems the actual threat to America and its elections and free speech was pre-Elon Musk Twitter.

Matt Taibi twitter files? Yes agreed 1000%. If the FBI diesn't investigate this, AND Agrawal (and board directors) don't go to jail for this, democracy is finished.

https://mobile.twitter.com/mtaibbi/status/1598825917165572099

Just go to show how brazen they are/were, you'd think they would delete the emails like competent crooks would.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

I thought TikTok in America was no longer owned by China. Wasn't that why the fat guy made all that fuss? Can't blame the Chinese, but let's blame them anyway. Gotta have a bogeyman every minute. I'm surprised they haven't blamed Biden's dementia on China too.

-3 ( +1 / -4 )

By the way, Meng of Huawei had her charges dropped just now. America realizes it can't go on with its lies and trumped up charges anymore. Game over.

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

 If the FBI diesn't investigate this, 

They wont, they were directly involved in election interference while using it. and they would have to investigate democrats, that wont happen.

maybe TikTok wouldn’t let the fbi do the same so that’s why the fbi is after them.

Must pain the fbi director so much to say that the orange guy was right about TikTok.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

National Security vs National Sanity.

I would be happy either-ways, TikTok and a lot of other U-Tuber stuff, is really wrong for the mentality of the Audience.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I thought TikTok in America was no longer owned by China. Wasn't that why the fat guy made all that fuss? Can't blame the Chinese, but let's blame them anyway.

Ownership is completely different from who runs the operations day-to-day. That is still located in China with Chinese software and engineering staff. Additionally, under oath, the US TikTok President said that she wasn't aware of any CCP members working for the company providing software and engineering support to the US-based TikTok servers, but that nearly all those people were located in China. As we all know, any company of any size in China has CCP members working there and some are providing direction from the CCP. This effectively makes any significant Chinese company an extension of the the CCP-Govt there.

This refusal to follow USgovt requests happens in the US all-the-time. There is proof that many companies refuse to comply with USGovt demands. MSFT, Google, Apple, and a number of smaller companies have refused. They got their day in court AND WON.

Just once, can you show where a Chinese company refused to follow CCP directions successfully? 1 time? Please.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Seems the actual threat to America and its elections and free speech was pre-Elon Musk Twitter.

Twitter hasn’t changed.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

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