WASHINGTON, Dec 13 (Reuters) – Republican Senator Marco Rubio announced bipartisan legislation on Tuesday to ban China’s popular social media app TikTok, increasing pressure on owner ByteDance Ltd amid U.S. fears that the app can be used to spy on Americans and censor content.
The legislation would block all transactions by any social media company in or under the influence of China and Russia, Rubio’s office said in a news release, adding that a companion bill to the House of Representatives of the United States was sponsored by the Republican Congressman Mike Gallagher and the Democrat Raja. Krishnamoorthi.
“It is troubling that instead of encouraging the administration to conclude its national security review of TikTok, some members of Congress have decided to push for a politically motivated ban that will do nothing to advance America’s national security.” said TikTok. The spokesperson said in a statement, adding that the company will continue to brief members of Congress on plans that are “under way” to “further secure our platform in the United States.”
The bill comes as scrutiny of TikTok has grown in Washington in recent weeks, following a failed bid by the Trump administration to ban the video-sharing app.
In a hearing last month, FBI Director Chris Wray said TikTok’s operations in the United States raise national security concerns, signaling the risk that the Chinese government could use it to influence users or control your devices.
Alabama and Utah on Monday joined other US states banning the use of TikTok on state government devices and computer networks due to national security concerns. Read more
In 2020, then-President Donald Trump tried to block new users from downloading TikTok and ban other transactions that would have effectively blocked use of the apps in the United States, but lost a series of court battles over the measure.
The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), a powerful national security body, in 2020 ordered ByteDance to divest TikTok over fears that US user data could be passed to China’s communist government.
CFIUS and TikTok have been in talks for months with the goal of reaching a national security agreement to protect the data of more than 100 million TikTok users.
Report by Alexandra Alper; Edited by Jonathan Oatis, Alexandra Hudson and Marguerita Choy
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