Lawmakers in the United States are considering making changes to a bill that would grant the Biden administration more authority to ban Chinese-owned TikTok.
This comes after the company engaged in “aggressive lobbying” efforts. Democratic Senator Mark Warner, the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee and co-sponsor of the bill, expressed that TikTok’s lobbying activities hindered their momentum when the “Restrict Act” was first introduced.
Warner stated that they have proposed amendments to address concerns that the bill may impact individual Americans or lead to a broad expansion of government power. The aim is to address these concerns in a fair manner.
If passed, the “Restrict Act” would allow President Biden to ban or mandate the sale of foreign-owned technologies, applications, software, or e-commerce platforms if they pose a national security threat to U.S. users.
Of particular concern to federal officials is the potential for American user data on TikTok to be accessed by the Chinese government, as per China’s law that companies must comply with information requests from Beijing.
With over 100 million American users, TikTok’s impact raises alarms, with a recent survey showing that nearly 60% of Americans consider it a threat to national security.
However, Warner’s comments also highlight the challenges and complexities associated with a nationwide ban on TikTok.
Montana became the first state to completely ban the Chinese-owned video app, but shortly after the ban was signed into law, five TikTok users filed a lawsuit against the state to overturn the legislation.
Last week, TikTok revealed its involvement in financially supporting the lawsuit against Montana’s ban after failing to mention it earlier.
In the midst of the discussion surrounding the future of TikTok in the United States, it remains uncertain how the situation will unfold.
The landscape is constantly evolving, and one thing is for certain – the fate of TikTok hangs in the balance, and its impact on national security continues to be a subject of widespread concern among Americans and lawmakers alike.