Trump has banned TikTok! Here's what you need to know
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Trump has banned TikTok! Here's what you need to know
Jumping Trout, LLC
(CNET, AUG 2020) So, it's official. The president has officially banned TikTok as of Thursday, effective in 45 days. The ban comes from an order that bans "transactions" with ByteDance, the apps Chinese owner, in an attempt to prohibit the selling of data to China's government.
The orders come from the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law that allows the president to regulate international commerce after delcaring a national ememergenct in repsonse to any unusual or extraordinary threat to the US. TikTok has been in the news recently on Trump's call to have the app banned a few weeks ago, under the impression that the app could sell personal information to China. Since then, the US Army and Navy have banned service members from downloading the app to government issued phones. Two senators have also requested the Department of Justice open an investigation of TikTok, as well as the videoconferencing app Zoom.
Not sure if there's actually been proof of the selling of data from TikTok, or if this is just heresay. But the conern stems from the perceived inability of Chinese companies to reject requests from China's ruling Communist Party to access user data. Even though all TikTok user data is stored in the US, and all data centers reside outside of China and therefore not subject to Chinese law.
Regardless, this move could potentially affect app stores that distribute the popular software in the US considering TikTok has boomed as one of the most popular apps in the last few months, due to boredom from the coronavirus pandemic. Still, India has already banned the app and Australia is considering blocking it.
Originally, the apps US operations were to be given time as Microsoft entered into discussions with ByteDance to purchase part of the business, thus relieving TikTok of being labeled as a chinese company. Even under the order, Microsoft can still buy the company, since the ban won't take effect for another 45 days. Negotiations could be wrapped up in just three weeks.
So, what happens when TikTok is under a new company? Will anything change? Will we still get our videos? Or worse - what happens when TikTok is really banned? I'm sure there will be another app in it's place right after, and we'll have something else to worry about soon. (Remember Vine?).
Source: https://www.cnet.com/news/trump-issues-order-effectively-banning-tiktok-everything-you-need-to-know/
The orders come from the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a law that allows the president to regulate international commerce after delcaring a national ememergenct in repsonse to any unusual or extraordinary threat to the US. TikTok has been in the news recently on Trump's call to have the app banned a few weeks ago, under the impression that the app could sell personal information to China. Since then, the US Army and Navy have banned service members from downloading the app to government issued phones. Two senators have also requested the Department of Justice open an investigation of TikTok, as well as the videoconferencing app Zoom.
Not sure if there's actually been proof of the selling of data from TikTok, or if this is just heresay. But the conern stems from the perceived inability of Chinese companies to reject requests from China's ruling Communist Party to access user data. Even though all TikTok user data is stored in the US, and all data centers reside outside of China and therefore not subject to Chinese law.
Regardless, this move could potentially affect app stores that distribute the popular software in the US considering TikTok has boomed as one of the most popular apps in the last few months, due to boredom from the coronavirus pandemic. Still, India has already banned the app and Australia is considering blocking it.
Originally, the apps US operations were to be given time as Microsoft entered into discussions with ByteDance to purchase part of the business, thus relieving TikTok of being labeled as a chinese company. Even under the order, Microsoft can still buy the company, since the ban won't take effect for another 45 days. Negotiations could be wrapped up in just three weeks.
So, what happens when TikTok is under a new company? Will anything change? Will we still get our videos? Or worse - what happens when TikTok is really banned? I'm sure there will be another app in it's place right after, and we'll have something else to worry about soon. (Remember Vine?).
Source: https://www.cnet.com/news/trump-issues-order-effectively-banning-tiktok-everything-you-need-to-know/
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