The Australian government faces calls to ban TikTok amid concerns that the social media platform poses a threat to national security and that user data may be shared with China.
The popular video application, owned by the Chinese company Bytedance, is used by more than 1.6 million Australians.
A federal MP revealed plans to put TikTok in the face of foreign interference through the Senate investigation of Social Networks for fear that it is collecting data and storing the information on Chinese servers.
The Australian government faces calls for a TikTok ban amid concerns that it is a national security threat that could be sharing user data with the Chinese government (file image)
The MP said that TikTok has gone unnoticed in Australia and that the Chinese Communist Party (the flag in the photo) should take it seriously as an effort to collect data.
The unidentified deputy said that TikTok had gone unnoticed in Australia and that the Chinese Communist Party should consider it as an effort to collect data.
“It could be dressed differently, but it is the same beast,” the MP told the Herald Sun.
According to the MP, several members of parliament are pushing for the app to be banned, arguing that it represents a greater threat than the Chinese-owned messaging app WeChat.
Committee Chair Senator Jenny McAllister said TikTok should comply with the request to be transported before the Senate investigation, as Australians will await a response from the company.
‘Part of the work of this Committee is to get all those interested to participate in the room and create a forum where we can have a very good discussion about what the limits are, what is and what is not acceptable in this type of matter, ‘Ms McAllister said.
Analyst at the Australian Institute for Strategic Policy, Fergus Ryan, said that TikTok was full of mass surveillance and propaganda.
The app also censored all opinions against China and had the ability to send information directly to Beijing, Ryan said.
He said there was “no doubt” that the Chinese Communist Party had the data since there are party members within the company.
Kimberley Kitching, a member of the Foreign Interference Committee, said Australians don’t understand what apps like TikTok do with their personal information.
‘Since there is credible evidence to suggest that TikTok user data has been sent back to servers in China, where it can then be analyzed and used by authorities to identify and create profiles to track users, it would be entirely appropriate for senior representatives to have the company appear before the committee to answer questions about this, “said the Labor senator.
Liberal MP and Chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee Andrew Hastie said in February that the application was a threat to national security.
“The 2017 China National Intelligence Law means that the Chinese government can compel companies to share information with them,” he told ABC at 7:30 at the time.
“So I doubt if our information is secure when it is owned by Chinese companies.”
TikTok is a Chinese social media application where users can stream live, create short videos and music videos and Gif with a lot of features. In the photo: a video shared by soldiers
In January, TikTok was banned from all Australian Defense Force personnel for fear of safety.
Hastie, who served in the ADF and is a vocal critic of the Chinese state, said she was concerned that the Chinese Communist Party could access users’ information, such as their name, age and location.
“TikTok is widely used by teens, but they are our future leaders … and we need to protect their information in the long term,” he said.
Liberal MP Andrew Hastie (pictured) closed the app in February as a threat to national security
The 37-year-old father of two also expressed fear for his own children and said, “I certainly don’t want my children’s data to go to a foreign country that can use it for dire purposes.”
TikTok is the international version of the Chinese Douyin application where users create and upload short videos and GIFs with a lot of features.
The application asks users for access to the camera, the microphone contact list and the location of their phones when they register.
The company says it stores its data in the US and Singapore, not China, but experts fear the Chinese state may still be able to access it.
Users of the app, which is now more popular than Snapchat, only have to be 13 to register, and anyone can contact them unless they make their profile private.
Even then, anyone can ask to see their photos and videos, and even pretend to be another child.
A spokeswoman for TikTok Australia said ongoing work is underway to ensure that the information in the app is secure.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted TikTok for comment.
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