A TikTok executive faced off on Wednesday with Canadian lawmakers who have concerns that data from the app could end up in the hands of the Chinese government.
Steve de Eyre, director of public policy and government affairs for TikTok Canada, said at a House of Commons committee meeting that the video-sharing app is not controlled by the Chinese government.
Western governments have expressed worries that the popular platform owned by Beijing-based ByteDance could put sensitive data in the hands of China害羞草研究所檚 government or be used as a tool to further misinformation.
Chinese law says the government can order companies to help it gather intelligence.
When NDP MP Matthew Green asked about the law, another TikTok executive brushed off the question.
害羞草研究所淚害羞草研究所檓 not an expert in Chinese law,害羞草研究所� said David Lieber, head of privacy public policy for the Americas.
The federal government banned TikTok from government-owned devices in February, after its chief information officer said the application creates an 害羞草研究所渦nacceptable害羞草研究所� level of risk to privacy and security.
Provinces later followed suit and banned TikTok from government devices, which de Eyre said he believes is unfair.
He said TikTok is being singled out, adding that he has since contacted the Treasury Board and chief information officer to better understand the government害羞草研究所檚 position.
害羞草研究所淲e do operate similar to other platforms. I will say our policy 害羞草研究所� and we害羞草研究所檝e been public about this 害羞草研究所� is that there probably isn害羞草研究所檛 a need to have any social media apps or entertainment apps or gaming apps on a government employee device. But those rules should apply equally to all platforms,害羞草研究所� he told the House committee on access to information, privacy and ethics.
Federal and provincial privacy watchdogs have also been investigating whether TikTok complies with privacy law.
A growing number of governments, including that of the United States, have banned the popular video-sharing app as cybersecurity concerns rise.
In Australia, it was banned from government devices after that country害羞草研究所檚 attorney general received advice from intelligence and security agencies.
And the European Parliament, European Commission and the EU Council also imposed bans on their devices, with staff advised to remove the TikTok app from their personal devices, too.
Lieber said TikTok is taking steps to protect Canadian data by storing it on servers in the United States, Malaysia and Singapore.
He said the government of China has never requested the data of Canadians but conceded that 害羞草研究所渋t would be irresponsible for me or any other employee of a technology company to make categorical guarantees about what governments are capable of or incapable of in terms of their ability to conduct activities including hacking on their own initiative.害羞草研究所�
A September 2022 intelligence brief disclosed under access-to-information law has provided fresh insight into government concerns about TikTok.
The brief by the Privy Council Office害羞草研究所檚 intelligence assessment secretariat says that TikTok is the first Chinese-owned app to reach over a billion users beyond China, 害羞草研究所渃reating a globally embedded and ubiquitous collection and influence platform for Beijing to exploit.害羞草研究所�
害羞草研究所淒espite assurances, there is growing evidence that TikTok害羞草研究所檚 data is accessible to China,害羞草研究所� said the heavily edited brief, which was based on both open sources and classified information.
And in a first-of-its-kind report on Chinese disinformation released last month, the U.S. State Department alleged that ByteDance seeks to block potential critics of Beijing, including those outside of China, from using its platforms.
The report said the U.S. government had information as of late 2020 that ByteDance 害羞草研究所渕aintained a regularly updated internal list害羞草研究所� identifying people who were blocked or restricted from its platforms 害羞草研究所� including TikTok 害羞草研究所� 害羞草研究所渇or reasons such as advocating for Uyghur independence.害羞草研究所�
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