WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.840 If you're a smartphone enthusiast, you've probably heard about big-name Chinese phone 00:00:03.840 --> 00:00:08.160 manufacturers like ZTE and Huawei being restricted from the US market. 00:00:08.800 --> 00:00:14.800 So it may not be terribly surprising that a Chinese app has now come under fire as well. 00:00:14.800 --> 00:00:21.200 I'm talking about none other than TikTok, the app best known for poorly singing teenagers and 00:00:21.200 --> 00:00:22.160 viral dance-offs. 00:00:24.560 --> 00:00:28.560 But why is TikTok of all things suddenly under so much scrutiny? 00:00:28.640 --> 00:00:33.760 Well, certain US officials have described it as a potential national security threat. 00:00:35.520 --> 00:00:42.720 But how could that be? Well, the reason the US and some of its allies are so concerned about Chinese technology 00:00:42.720 --> 00:00:47.600 is the possibility that backdoors could be built in to Chinese-controlled software 00:00:47.600 --> 00:00:52.560 or hardware to allow mass spying against Western citizens and interests. 00:00:52.560 --> 00:00:55.920 And although Huawei, for example, is a private company, 00:00:55.920 --> 00:01:00.960 they've faced criticism in the past for getting too much support from China's communist government, 00:01:00.960 --> 00:01:06.160 leading some to worry that their communication technology could be used for shady doings. 00:01:06.160 --> 00:01:10.960 Now, TikTok is also owned by a private Chinese company called ByteDance, 00:01:10.960 --> 00:01:15.360 and like Huawei, they're not officially an ARM of the government in Beijing. 00:01:15.360 --> 00:01:20.240 But the concerns about undue influence from Chinese authorities remain. 00:01:20.240 --> 00:01:25.600 For example, China forced ByteDance to shut down a different app centered around memes 00:01:25.600 --> 00:01:30.560 and videos in 2018, simply because it didn't like the content. 00:01:30.560 --> 00:01:35.680 ByteDance then issued a statement in which it attempted to appease the Chinese Communist Party 00:01:35.680 --> 00:01:41.040 and promised to hire party members as well as increase the number of employees working as sensors. 00:01:41.680 --> 00:01:46.400 So it looks like fears that ByteDance might end up becoming pressured to be a tool of the 00:01:46.400 --> 00:01:53.520 Chinese government aren't completely unfounded. And while it's true that US tech companies have gotten in hot water with the American government 00:01:53.520 --> 00:01:58.400 before over content, not to mention the NSA surveillance revelations that came out some years 00:01:58.400 --> 00:02:05.520 back, Chinese lack of data protection laws or an independent judiciary with due process guarantees, 00:02:05.520 --> 00:02:10.320 as well as China Internet Security Law, which gives the government very broad powers to collect 00:02:10.320 --> 00:02:15.440 data from tech companies, has raised concerns that it would be far easier for the Chinese 00:02:15.440 --> 00:02:20.880 Communist Party to get its hands on any data it wants from ByteDance and other domestic technology 00:02:21.760 --> 00:02:27.600 firms, even if the data itself was collected and stored outside of China as ByteDance claims 00:02:27.600 --> 00:02:33.120 is the case with TikTok. But of course, that's a lot of speculation. Is this actually what's 00:02:33.120 --> 00:02:37.680 going on with TikTok? Well, so far, there's no evidence that the Chinese government has 00:02:37.680 --> 00:02:44.000 collected data en masse from TikTok or its users. And even if it did, it's important to look at 00:02:44.000 --> 00:02:50.400 what kind of information they'd be getting. TikTok does collect IP addresses and location data, but 00:02:51.040 --> 00:02:56.800 lots of apps do the same thing. Instead, it's far more likely that more valuable information, 00:02:56.800 --> 00:03:01.600 such as financial records and physical addresses, would come from other sources, 00:03:01.600 --> 00:03:06.400 such as security breaches of government agencies, as well as the credit bureau leaks that we all 00:03:06.400 --> 00:03:12.400 found out about in 2017. But another potentially huge issue with TikTok isn't related to data 00:03:12.400 --> 00:03:17.760 collection or the use of the app as a way to hack phones or networks. Other huge social media 00:03:17.760 --> 00:03:23.200 platforms, namely Facebook and Twitter, have faced criticism for being slanted politically 00:03:23.200 --> 00:03:27.840 or not doing enough to control the flow of misinformation about sensitive topics. 00:03:27.840 --> 00:03:33.280 And there's a fear that the Chinese government is already using TikTok to control and spin 00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:40.240 conversations about issues that people care about by forcing ByteDance to, well, dance to its tune. 00:03:40.880 --> 00:03:46.560 In 2019, there was a report that TikTok moderators were being forced to restrict negative comments 00:03:46.560 --> 00:03:50.960 about the Chinese system as well as content related to the Hong Kong protests and, 00:03:51.520 --> 00:03:58.400 unsurprisingly, about the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989. But regardless of what TikTok does or 00:03:58.400 --> 00:04:04.320 does not have the potential to become, both the US Army and Navy have banned the app and the State 00:04:04.320 --> 00:04:09.440 Department is said to be looking at a nationwide prohibition. India, which has also been at logger 00:04:09.440 --> 00:04:14.640 heads with China recently, has already banned TikTok, citing similar national security concerns. 00:04:14.640 --> 00:04:18.480 I just wonder what will happen if it does get banned in the US. There's probably going to be a 00:04:18.480 --> 00:04:22.880 lot of really upset Gen Zers. But instead of voicing their displeasure at the ballot box, 00:04:22.880 --> 00:04:28.160 maybe they'll find a way to resurrect Vine. I miss Vines. I'm kidding, I don't miss Vines. 00:04:28.160 --> 00:04:33.200 That was just in the script. Thanks for watching, guys. Like, dislike, check out our other videos, 00:04:33.200 --> 00:04:36.880 comment with a video suggestion if you have an idea for a future Fast as Possible, 00:04:36.880 --> 00:04:40.080 and don't forget to subscribe and follow.