(WSJ) TikTok, the embattled short-video app run by Chinese technology giant Bytedance Ltd., has written to Australian politicians to reassure them about the safety of user data and its independence, as concerns about the app’s Chinese ties grow.
Seeking to allay worries about state interference on the app, Lee Hunter, TikTok’s general manager for Australia, wrote in the two-page letter emailed to lawmakers that he was seeking to correct the record on a “number of false claims” made about the app and that TikTok is “not aligned with any Government, political party or ideology.”
The app popular with teenagers for its catchy tunes and visuals has become a geopolitical flashpoint over the past month, as regulators and politicians in the U.S. and India have questioned the Chinese technology company’s data security and obligations to its home government.
TikTok has surged in popularity this year, with at least 315 million downloads in the first quarter of 2020, becoming the most downloaded app ever for a single quarter, according to mobile-data firm Sensor Tower.
In Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison in a July 6 radio interview urged the public to be mindful of the type of apps they sign up for and conscious of the data they are sharing on social-media apps including TikTok and Chinese messaging platform WeChat. Other Australian officials have called TikTok a possible national-security threat.
A TikTok spokeswoman echoed Mr. Hunter’s assertions in the letter, saying TikTok doesn’t share information of its Australia users with any foreign government and wouldn’t do so if asked.
Mr. Hunter, a former executive at Alphabet Inc.’s Google unit who joined TikTok earlier this year, said in the letter that Australian user data is stored in servers in Singapore and in the U.S. and the app’s data and storage practices were consistent with or stronger than those of other global technology companies.
“The truth is, with tensions rising between some countries, TikTok has unfortunately been caught in the middle, and is being used by some as a political football,” added the Sydney-based executive. “I assure you—we’re a social-media platform for sharing videos—that’s all.”
TikTok’s pre-emptive move in Australia comes as relations between China and Australia have been fraught in recent months. In early February, Australia blocked entry for arrivals from China as news of the coronavirus outbreak spread. The country also tried to drum up support among European countries to investigate China’s early handling of the pandemic, a move China viewed as politically motivated.
Shortly after, Beijing placed tariffs on barley exports and suspended some meat exports from Australia, and imposed a travel warning for citizens traveling to the country.
Lawmakers who had received TikTok’s letter include Jenny McAllister, the chairwoman of Australia’s Select Committee on Foreign Interference through Social Media, who has expressed concerns publicly about inadequate transparency around the way TikTok handles user data and its content-moderation policies.
Stephen Jones, a Labor member of parliament, posted the letter on Twitter, saying, “Got this letter from Tick Tok [sic] today. Very pleased they’re reaching out but disappointed it didn’t come with music and dance moves.”
The Australian, a newspaper owned by Wall Street Journal publisher News Corp, reported the letter earlier.
The social-media firm, whose parent company is one of the most valuable tech startups in the world, has also come under the spotlight in the U.S. for its ties to China, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo suggesting the U.S. might limit users’ access to the app. On Sunday, White House adviser Peter Navarro said in an interview on Fox Business that data collected by TikTok go into servers in China and are shared with Chinese government agencies.
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman disputed Mr. Navarro’s comments and asked for evidence of such data sharing.
In India, where TikTok and 58 other Chinese apps were banned at the end of last month because of cybersecurity concerns, the companies have been given three weeks to respond to a list of more than 70 questions given by authorities.
Source: Wall Street Journal by Liza Lin
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