TikTok may soon be banned in the United States to prevent it from spying on its users.

There has never been a great love story between the United States and TikTok. In line with Huawei’s ban on sourcing from American companies, the Trump administration briefly banned the Chinese app from the country in 2020 before seeing that sanction lifted by his successor, Joe Biden. However, suspicions of espionage never completely dissipated.

Since its launch, TikTok has really come under criticism regarding the data collected from its users, especially children. It was these suspicions that prompted FCC Commissioner Bendan Carr to demand that Google and Apple remove the app from the Play Store and App Store. This letter comes in tumultuous context for the social network, following Buzzfeed’s regulatory investigation into its data use.

TikTok is at risk of being banned again in the US

After analyzing audio recordings of 80 internal meetings on TikTok, Buzzfeed reveals that TikTok has repeatedly had access to the confidential information of its American users. So, a member of the company’s Trust and Security department said: “Everything is seen in China”. A director also allegedly mentioned a specific “Main Executive”. “access to everything”.

In her letter, Brenda Carr refers to: “Worrying evidence and findings regarding TikTok’s data practices“, specifically referring to a study proving that the app has managed to circumvent the security measures of Android and iOS. “It is clear that TikTok poses an unacceptable national security risk due to its extensive data collection combined with Beijing’s seemingly uncontrolled access to this sensitive data. »

Google and Apple are required by July 8 to remove TikTok from their respective stores or otherwise declare that they refuse to comply. However, keep in mind that this request only comes from Brendan Carr and no other members of the FCC were involved.