Support in US for India banning TikTok and other Chinese apps

India's ban on 59 Chinese apps, including popular TikTok, has been widely ted in US, including by some prominent lawmakers, who have urged American government to follow suit as it is believed that short video-sharing app is a major security risk to country.

India on Monday banned 59 apps with Chinese links, including TikTok and UC Browser, saying y were prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and security of country. ban, which comes in backdrop of India's current stand-off along Line of Actual control in Lakh with Chinese troops, is also applicable for WeChat and Bigo Live.

“India bans TikTok and dozens of or Chinese apps in wake of dely clash,” powerful Republican Senator John Cornyn said in a tweet as he tagged a news report in Washington Post.

Republican Congressman Rick Crawford tweeted that “TikTok must go and it should have been gone yesterday.” Last week, US National Security visor, Robert O'Brien h alleged that Chinese Government is using TikTok for its own purposes.

“On TikTok, a Chinese-owned social media platform with over 40 million American users, probably a lot of your kids, and younger colleagues, accounts criticising CCP (Chinese Communist Party) and Beijing's policies are routinely removed or deleted,” O'Brien said in his public remarks.

At least two bills are pending in US Congress to ban federal government officials from using TikTok on ir cell phones, reflecting such a sentiment can gain momentum in US after India's decision.

“Would that be same Chinese TikTok that was used to tank attendance at Tulsa Rally?” tweeted Peter Navarro, Assistant to US President for Tre and Manufacturing Policy, as he tagged a news report from New York Times on India's decision to ban se Chinese social media apps.

Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham urged US to do same. “LEING WAY, WHERE'S U.S.? India bans dozens of Chinese apps including TikTok” she said in a tweet. Author Gordon Chang said that India just banned 59 Chinese apps, including TikTok. “Why can't US do same?” he asked. According to Forbes, with release of new clipboard warning in beta version of iOS 14, w with developers, TikTok seems to have been caught abusing clipboard in a quite extraordinary way.

“So it seems that TikTok didn't stop this invasive practice back in April as promised after all,” it said.

An amendment moved to “Moving Forward Act” in US House of Representatives being debated this week prohibits officers of Transportation Security ministration (TSA) using TikTok cellphone app. Republican Senator Joshua David Hawley, introduced a legislation in April prohibiting federal employees from using social media video application TikTok on government-issued devices.

"This is a necessary step to protect security of US,” he said. A similar legislation has been introduced in House of Representatives by Congressman Ken Buck.

“It (TikTok) is owned by a Chinese company that includes Chinese Community Party members in leership and it is required under Chinese law to share user data with Beijing,” said Senator Hawley, Chairman of Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism, during a recent Congressional hearing.

“TikTok has mitted that it has sent user data to China. To put it bluntly, this is a major security risk for American people,” Hawley said.

“What kind of data is TikTok collecting as it runs on our phones? A heck of a lot more than you would think. Ims, of course, that users post. But TikTok also collects information about messs that you send, about apps that you use-- or apps on your phone,” he said.

“It collects sites that you visit. It collects your search history. It collects your keystrokes. It collects your location data. It stores all of this and maybe lots, lots more. And I can tell you, as far of two small children who alrey have many of ir friends on social media even though y're quite young, I find this absolutely horrifying. And we kw that it's a national security risk,” Howley said.

According to Clyde Wallace, deputy assistant director of Cyber Division at FBI, where he oversees Cyber Division Operations and National Cyber Investigative Joint Task Force, TikTok is one example of an application that aver citizen doesn't understand implications of what's behind it and what data can flow from an application like that's basically controlled by a state sponsored actor.

“I think that lends into bigger threat that China poses today in that it's a holistic society approach to United States. It's t just TikTok application. It's data warehouses that store that data. Wher y be here in United States, owned by Chinese, or within Chinese borders mselves where that information is stored,” Wallace said.

In a statement on Tuesday, TikTok India He Nikhil Gandhi said company, which has some 200 million subscribers in India, has t shared any information of its users in India with any foreign government, including Chinese government, and that it places highest importance on user privacy and integrity. list of Chinese apps that have been banned by India also include Helo, Likee, CamScanner, Vigo Video, Mi Video Call - Xiaomi, Clash of Kings as well as e-commerce platforms Club Factory and Shein.