The US Senate has approved a foreign aid package that includes legislation addressing TikTok, the popular video-sharing platform owned by Chinese company ByteDance. The legislation, set to become law, requires the social network’s parent company, ByteDance, to sell TikTok or face an effective ban in the United States. Initially, the company will have nine months to close the deal, with the option to extend the deadline by another three months if significant progress is made towards closing the sale. However, any legal challenges could delay the implementation of the law.
The Senate vote was the result of a shrewd step by the House of Representatives, which included the TikTok bill in a high-priority foreign aid package to Kiev, Israel and Taiwan, thus prompting the Senate to take up the issue earlier than expected. By extending the time available to strike a deal, the House also secured greater support in the Senate, where the measure passed 79-18. TikTok, in a post on House of Representatives is using the pretext of significant foreign and humanitarian aid to re-force a ban that would trample on the free expression rights of 170 million Americans, devastate 7 million businesses and shut down a platform.”
Concerns from lawmakers and intelligence officials include the risk that ownership of TikTok by a China-based company could endanger American users’ data. This fear mainly stems from a Chinese national security law that could force companies to provide internal information. Although TikTok is based in Singapore and says it does not store American users’ data in China, some lawmakers worry that the Chinese government could influence the content viewed by US users.
Senator Mark Warner, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, highlighted the lack of trust in Chinese companies, saying that in order to control social media platforms, widely used for commerce, political and social debate, it is easy imagine how these can be manipulated to serve the goals of an authoritarian regime. In this turbulent environment, President Biden has stated that he is ready to sign the law and address the American people as soon as the bill reaches his desk. With the signing, the shipment of weapons and equipment to Ukraine is expected to begin immediately, showing the complexity and international scope of the issues at stake.