The White House has backed new bipartisan Senate legislation that might give the Biden administration the authority to prohibit TikTok in the US. The bill was introduced on Tuesday, Mar. 7.
TikTok is not explicitly mentioned in the law, as per reports. Still, it does encompass corporations based in nations that are at odds with the US, such as China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela.
Notably, ByteDance is a Chinese internet firm that owns the TikTok app and has become a viral success in the US by enabling users to make and share short videos.
The RESTRICT Act
When a foreign opponent shows interest in a business transaction, a software update, or a data transfer via information and communications technology (ICT), the new law would require the Commerce Department to investigate.
According to CNBC, the proposed legislation would allow the Commerce Secretary to submit a transaction to the President for action, including compulsory divestiture. This happens if the secretary finds the transaction creates an "undue or unacceptable risk" to US national security.
The bill's official title, the RESTRICT Act, is an acronym for its intended purpose: Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology.
Democratic Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Mark Warner of Virginia introduced the bill on Capitol Hill with the support of a diverse coalition of Republican and Democratic senators. When Warner was doing his press conference, the White House issued a statement supporting the bill.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said this bill establishes a methodical framework for tackling technology-based threats to the security and safety of Americans. It would also give the government new powers to reduce national security vulnerabilities in the tech industry.
Sullivan demanded that the bill be sent to the President's desk without delay.
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TikTok's Claims and Pledges
TikTok has frequently rejected the principal concern of federal investigators, that it saves data from American users in China.
Verge reported that the firm has been in talks with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to remain operational in the US for almost three years, despite claims and pledges to decrease safety hazards.
Earlier this week, a representative from TikTok gave a keynote address outlining Project Texas, the company's most extensive attempt to protect American data from potential invasion. The plan would isolate the majority of TikTok's activities in the US from its Chinese parent firm, ByteDance. Oracle, founded by Larry Ellison, would contribute to auditing data transfers inside the US.
Later this month, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is scheduled to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
