US orders Chinese TikTok owners to sell their stakes

The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden has required TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell their shares in the company to avoid a U.S. ban on the app. About it reported The Wall Street Journal, citing sources familiar with the situation.

The proposal to sell TikTok was initiated by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.

TikTok noted that ByteDance (the parent company of TikTok) is 60% owned by global investors, 20% by employees, and 20% by the founders of the platform. However, the securities of the founders have more significant voting rights, which is typical for technology companies.

The app’s ban in the US stems from US authorities’ concerns about the country’s national security due to possible espionage and influence campaigns by ByteDance using TikTok. The platform said the forced sale would not eliminate the perceived security risk.

The service pledged $1.5 billion for a program to protect US user data and content from access or influence by the Chinese government.

In addition, TikTok spokeswoman Brooke Oberwetter said the change in ownership would not limit the use of user data. According to her, the problem of national security can be solved using the transparent protection of data and systems in the United States with reliable monitoring and verification, which the service is already implementing.

According to TikTok, the security plan will isolate the service’s operations in the United States, and user data will be stored on the servers of the American company Oracle. Critics point out that these measures are not enough, since any Chinese company will comply with Beijing’s requirements.

TikTok chief executive Show Zu Chu is scheduled to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee next week to answer questions from lawmakers regarding security issues.

Senator Mark Warner recently introduced bill which will give the United States the right to restrict the use of technology services operating in the United States by certain foreign governments, as this creates risks for the confidential data of American citizens and the national security of the country.