Former White House CIO warns the tech industry should prepare for a TikTok ban

[midian182]

A hot potato: Could the TikTok bill, which would force owner ByteDance to sell the app or face a block from US app stores and web hosting platforms, become law? Former White House Chief Information Officer (CIO) Theresa Payton warns that US tech firms should prepare for the worst as ByteDance may not willingly divest its wildly popular app.

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act was passed by Congress last month. If it comes into effect, Chinese owner ByteDance will be forced to divest TikTok within about 180 days; otherwise, the app will be blocked in the US. That could involve ISPs blocking traffic to TikTok, social networks might be forced to stop videos from the app being shared, and app stores will have to put TikTok on the banned list.

President Biden gave his blessing to the bill a few days after it was passed by Congress. However, it's facing delays in the Senate and there's plenty of pushback from critics citing First Amendment rights - a judge blocked a state-wide ban on TikTok in Montana in December over free-speech concerns.

In an interview with The Register, Payton said the likelihood of China blocking TikTok's divestment and the short amount of time it would be given to complete such a massive deal means a ban looks likely if the bill passes.

"I don't know about you, but I can think of very few major transactions that can happen in 180 days," Payton said.

Theresa Payton

A TikTok ban could have a huge impact on US companies beyond the domestic implications. It would also affect diplomatic relations with China, which does restrict/prohibit a lot of US products and services, as well as the American firms that do business there, such as Apple. "Pick an American icon company that builds things in China," Payton told The Reg. "They could say 'you're no longer allowed to do business here and you need to divest.'"

TikTok, banned by most American government organizations over privacy concerns, has long claimed it has no links to the Chinese government. It repeatedly emphasizes that it now stores its US user data in its own data centers in the United States and has moved its infrastructure to Oracle. But Payton is worries that China's law enforcement or government could one day demand ByteDance turn over TikTok data as part of an investigation.

Last month saw Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak say in an interview that he doesn't understand the proposed TikTok ban. He also called out the US government for being hypocritical by targeting just one social media platform for tracking users when they all do it. The Woz said he gets a lot of entertainment out of watching TikTok clips, such as those of dog rescues.

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Former White House CIO warns the tech industry should prepare for a TikTok ban

 

[winjer]

China has banned or restricted so many western companies.
It's time they get a taste of their own poison.

 

[NumberNine]

The only logical way to prepare for the death of Tik Tok is by planning a party.

 

[Dimitriid]

China has banned or restricted so many western companies.
It's time they get a taste of their own poison.

Disagree: Even if you take the American mindset and philosophy of personal freedom you cannot combat free speech violations with your own free speech violations: all you are doing is confirming that the censorship, propaganda and suppression from the CCP actually works and Americans are willing to use the exact same tactics when it suits their interests and narrative.

 

[drjekelmrhyde]

Social networks might be forced to stop videos from the app being shared

A lot of YouTubers will go broke. A ton of them just react to Tik Tok videos.

 

[winjer]

Disagree: Even if you take the American mindset and philosophy of personal freedom you cannot combat free speech violations with your own free speech violations: all you are doing is confirming that the censorship, propaganda and suppression from the CCP actually works and Americans are willing to use the exact same tactics when it suits their interests and narrative.

Commercial disputes are not protected under free speech.
And this is above all, a commercial dispute between the 2 major economic powers.

 

[Dimitriid]

Commercial disputes are not protected under free speech.
And this is above all, a commercial dispute between the 2 major economic powers.

I cannot take you seriously if you call this a 'Commercial dispute' Even on the very article you're arguing this it expresses in no uncertain terms that this is not regarding a commercial dispute but security concerns about data:

TikTok, banned by most American government organizations over privacy concerns, has long claimed it has no links to the Chinese government. It repeatedly emphasizes that it now stores its US user data in its own data centers in the United States and has moved its infrastructure to Oracle. But Payton is worries that China's law enforcement or government could one day demand ByteDance turn over TikTok data as part of an investigation.

The very people you're defending are telling us 'No actually, this isn't a commercial dispute, we're concerned data will be handed over to the Chinese government and we want to protect our citizen's data and rights' and I'm sure many more mostly empty platitudes (As there's absolutely no concern in their eyes when American government agencies demand said data from other social media networks of course and are compelled to provide it)

 

[winjer]

I cannot take you seriously if you call this a 'Commercial dispute' Even on the very article you're arguing this it expresses in no uncertain terms that this is not regarding a commercial dispute but security concerns about data.

You are very naive, if you think this is about free speech.
This is all about trade disputes.
Just remember that Tik Tok does not exist to give freedom to anyone, it exists to monetize people's engagement.

 

[Burty117]

Just remember that Tik Tok does not exist to give freedom to anyone, it exists to monetize people's engagement.

Right, and it's okay for Facebook to hand over its data to American agency's, just not for TikTok?

 

[winjer]

Right, and it's okay for Facebook to hand over its data to American agency's, just not for TikTok?

I didn't say any of that. I didn't even mention other social media companies.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

I didn't say any of that. I didn't even mention other social media companies.

You claimed that the whole reason this tik tok ban is on the table is over a "trade dispute", and your reasoning is that it exists to monetize engagement, which EVERY social media company does.

So why is it OK for facebook to exist, but not tik tok?

 

[atomicgirl]

The only logical way to prepare for the death of Tik Tok is by planning a party.

I will buy a bottle of champagne to celebrate. Americans are finally waking up.

 

[winjer]

You claimed that the whole reason this tik tok ban is on the table is over a "trade dispute", and your reasoning is that it exists to monetize engagement, which EVERY social media company does.

So why is it OK for facebook to exist, but not tik tok?

Stop trying to distort what other people say.

 

[Furriest]

TikTok is a creative void that supports brevity over depth, I will relish when TikTok and the hypershort video format is dead.

 

[trparky]

TikTok, banned by most American government organizations over privacy concerns, has long claimed it has no links to the Chinese government.

Tell me something I'll believe.

That's not how things work in China. By simply being in business in China, you are under the control of the Chinese Communist Party. If they ask you to jump, you ask how high and in what trajectory while on the way up. If you don't... well, bad sh*t will happen to you.

 

[atomicgirl]

The very people you're defending are telling us 'No actually, this isn't a commercial dispute, we're concerned data will be handed over to the Chinese government and we want to protect our citizen's data and rights' and I'm sure many more mostly empty platitudes (As there's absolutely no concern in their eyes when American government agencies demand said data from other social media networks of course and are compelled to provide it)

Techno-Libertarians are so tiresome with their lazy whataboutisms about the US government vs everyone else. So lazy, man. So lazy.

As an American citizen, I would rather have my data handed over to American government agencies than foreign ones. The reason is that we have a system of checks and balances--as well as a culture of whistleblowing--that keeps those agencies in check in case they step out of line. China doesn't. Whistleblowers disappear and bad actors tow the party line, no matter what. Thank God that in the United States of America, if anyone oversteps their bounds, people are encouraged to step forward and are even given protections if they do.

Another thing, understand how US agencies work. A lot of Techno-Libertarians are foreign nationals or little kids getting informed by Alan Moore graphic novels, so don't understand American politics or our system of government. Agencies are acting on the behest of complaints filed by US citizens. It is a lie that they're independent bodies run by elitists that do whatever they want, and therefore are wielding power against the will of the average person. The ban on Tik Tok was spurred by grassroots efforts in this country. People wrote their Congressmen, filed complaints to the FTC and went to mainstream media to expose how their kids wound up getting injured or killed by challenges. Stop wasting your time spreading propaganda about how our agencies and political apparatus works. It doesn't work the way you or other Techno-Libertarians keep repeating ad nauseum.

 

[atomicgirl]

Disagree: Even if you take the American mindset and philosophy of personal freedom you cannot combat free speech violations with your own free speech violations: all you are doing is confirming that the censorship, propaganda and suppression from the CCP actually works and Americans are willing to use the exact same tactics when it suits their interests and narrative.

Was this written by A.I? What does this even mean? So much bizarre circular reasoning here.

 

[atomicgirl]

You claimed that the whole reason this tik tok ban is on the table is over a "trade dispute", and your reasoning is that it exists to monetize engagement, which EVERY social media company does.

So why is it OK for facebook to exist, but not tik tok?

He mentioned monetized engagement to argue against this notion that Tik Tok exists as a bastion of free speech, not to say that monetized engagement is why it's being banned.

 

[Burty117]

Saw this recently, really makes you “trust” American government agency’s:

 

[atomicgirl]

Saw this recently, really makes you “trust” American government agency’s:

Translation: I trust the CCP government over the US government. My loyalties are with Red China.

 

[Burty117]

Translation: I trust the CCP government over the US government. My loyalties are with Red China.

I don’t trust either, both want to exploit my personal information.

I live in the UK by the way, we have one of the worst governments in modern history as far as I can tell.

Edit: also, did you watch the video? She officially became a US citizen, one of the questions to do that is “have you ever persecuted someone because of their political views” if you answer “yes” you’re not allowed to become a US citizen.

Then when being invited to a talk, she’s called up by the FBI and told she cannot attend because of her political views…

 

[atomicgirl]

I don’t trust either, both want to exploit my personal information.

I live in the UK by the way, we have one of the worst governments in modern history as far as I can tell.

If you're from the UK, don't condescend to me about my own country's politics, with a dodgy video full of obvious edits. You have no idea what you're talking about, because you're not from here.

Thank you for this response, by the way, because it confirms what I've suspected all along--that foreign nationals have been the biggest sowers of division of American discourse. But I'm going to give you props: at least you're one of the honest ones admitting where they're from, as opposed to all the other ones who slip undercover passing as one of us.

 

[Burty117]

If you're from the UK, don't condescend to me about my own country's politics, with a dodgy video full of obvious edits. You have no idea what you're talking about, because you're not from here.

Thank you for this response, by the way, because it confirms what I've suspected all along--that foreign nationals have been the biggest sowers of division of American discourse. But I'm going to give you props: at least you're one of the honest ones admitting where they're from, as opposed to all the other ones who slip undercover passing as one of us.

Oh I don’t want to be American, you can be sure of that

Also, that video, are we suppose to completely dismiss the fact she was forcibly stopped from attending a talk because of her political views by an American agency?

What is the defence for the FBI here?

 

[atomicgirl]

Oh I don’t want to be American, you can be sure of that

Also, that video, are we suppose to completely dismiss the fact she was forcibly stopped from attending a talk because of her political views by an American agency?

What is the defence for the FBI here?

No, you want to be an American, which explains why you keep aggressively infiltrating every US-centric discussion and arguing with us about our own affairs.

But that's neither here nor there. This story about Tik Tok is about a measure that US lawmakers are considering regarding the app. If you don't like the idea of government issuing bans on Tik Tok based on a hypocritical double standard, feel free to comment all you want about a news story in with British Parliament is considering a ban. But keep your own feelings about your government out of American affairs. This story has nothing to do with the UK or your feelings about your government. The UK is not the US and vice versa.

 

[Endymio]

What is the defence for the FBI here?

The FBI has strayed a bit into enforcing far-Left authoritarian dogma, sure. But conflating that with a regime that keeps millions of its own people in slave-labor genocide camps is indescribably banal. Your argument is like claiming that, since I have dust on my windowsills in my own home, I can't complain about the truckloads of rotting garbage in my neighbor's yard -- even when it flows over into mine.

I live in the UK by the way, we have one of the worst governments in modern history as far as I can tell.

The UK has its share of problems, as their recent push to criminalize "hate speech" attests, but this puerile statement only demonstrates how little you actually know of the world. Your government doesn't even make the Top 500 list for "worst in modern history", which you'd know if you'd ever lived in one.