TikTok Employees In China Have Access to Australian User Data

TikTok is in hot water again, this time with Australian authorities, with an executive admitting that employees in China can access Australian user data....
TikTok Employees In China Have Access to Australian User Data
Written by Staff
  • TikTok is in hot water again, this time with Australian authorities, with an executive admitting that employees in China can access Australian user data.

    Australia joined the US, EU, UK, and Canada in banning TikTok from government devices. According to The Guardian, Will Farrell, the company’s head of data security, was testifying before the Australian parliament members. In the course of his testimony, Farrell admitted that employees in China can access Australian user data, although he said it was only in specific instances.

    “Employees can’t get access without a clear justification and levels of approval,” Farrell said.

    Despite his efforts to downplay the circumstances under which it could happen, Farrell could not verify how many times employees in China had accessed such data.

    The revelation is just the latest in a string is setbacks TikTok has experienced over growing concerns about Beijing’s espionage and surveillance efforts. TikTok’s parent company ByteDance was found to be using the social media app to surveil Forbes journalists. The incident sparked an FBI/DOJ investigation into the companies.

    In addition to the aforementioned jurisdictions banning the app from government devices, the state of Montana passed a general ban prohibiting the app from being available to anyone in Montana.

    The US has similarly considered a widescale TikTok ban, and this most recent revelation is unlikely to help TikTok’s case.

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