Why does America want to ban the TikTok application?

2024-04-25 2024-04-25T12:52:01Z

Weather of Arabia - “Tik Tok”, the application known for its short and entertaining video clips, has been facing increasing attack from the political class in the United States for several months. Due to suspicions of its connection to the Chinese government, and in a new development, former President Donald Trump announced during the past weeks his intention to ban the use of the application in the United States.

While “Tik Tok”, which belongs to the Chinese “ByteDance” group, enjoys great popularity, especially among teenagers and young people, as it offers diverse content that includes dance and music, and the number of application users around the world exceeds one billion people, making it one of the most popular applications ever. .

For more:

This application is used by 90% of the Saudi population, according to a report by the Communications Commission

Why does America want to ban the TikTok application?

The TikTok application, known for its short and entertaining video clips, has attracted the attention of the US administration and other government agencies. Due to concerns that it may collect information about American users that could be handed over to the Chinese government, which could lead to it being used to spy on American citizens.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed concern in an interview with Fox News last July, noting that downloading the app puts users' information in the "hands of the Chinese Communist Party."

Other US officials and lawmakers have expressed concern about Beijing using the app for harmful purposes toward the United States. The US Army and Navy prevented their personnel from downloading the application on government-owned phones.

Can TikTok be banned in the United States?

Members of both the Democratic and Republican parties in the US Congress have advanced legal amendments to ban foreign-owned companies.

If the amendments are approved, ByteDance, which owns the TikTok application, will have to sell it within 6 months, or face being banned from being present on app stores and online platforms in the United States.

US President Joe Biden expressed his readiness to sign the legal amendment if it reaches it after its approval in Congress.

This step comes after a series of continuous efforts in previous administrations to confront the application. Due to national security concerns, former US President Donald Trump tried to ban the app during his term in 2020, but failed.

Despite this, Trump, who is seeking the Republican Party nomination for the upcoming presidential elections, criticized the current legal amendment proposed in Congress, considering that banning TikTok would unfairly favor the Facebook application.