TikTok EU, Canada, India restrictions grow as full US ban advances in Congress
India banned the entire TikTok app; the EU commission set restrictions for employees; the U.S. banned its use on all government devices, and a bill that makes it easier to ban it entirely;y in the US is advancing in Congress. What’s next for TikTok?
by Bobby Owsinski from Music 3.0
While TikTok is the red hot social platform today, it’s looking more and more that general use may be restricted or even banned before the platform runs through its popularity cycle. Following the U.S., other countries around the world are mandating that the app be deleted from all government devices because of heightened security concerns, and there are now several bills before Congress that ask for TikTok restrictions from the general public.
The EU Follows The US
The EU Commission has now asked all employees to uninstall TikTok from all corporate and personal devices as soon as possible. This came after its IT group expressed data security concerns from the Chinese app. That’s not all, it looks like the U.K. will soon follow with a TikTok ban of its own, following one from the Canadian government, while there is a total ban of the app in India.
In the U.S., the TikTok ban extends beyond the Federal government to 26 state governments as well as many colleges and universities. Several bills in both the U.S. Senate and House look to place a permanent ban on the app for all U.S. users.
But Why?
Why would anyone want to ban such an innocent app built around silly short videos? Maybe it’s not so innocent. TikTok is owned by Bytedance, a huge Chinese media company that also owns a number of smaller social platforms. However, the Chinese government has a stake in the company, and Bytedance has a strategic partnership with the Chinese Ministry of Public Security, so it’s natural to assume that there’s some sort of spying going on.
Numerous government studies have found evidence that TikTok is collecting biometric data from its users though, including voiceprints and faceprints, as well as spreading disinformation that may be harmful to its users and various governments. Another hot issue is its impact on the mental health of younger users, especially teenagers.
Momentum for a full ban that goes beyond current government TikTok restrictions is growing, even though it’s not fully in the spotlight. All it needs is one more newsworthy incident to pick up speed.
Bobby Owsinski is a producer/engineer, author and coach. He has authored 24 books on recording, music, the music business and social media.
