A bipartisan bill, known as the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act,” was approved unanimously by the US House Energy and Commerce Committee. The bill proposes making it unlawful for any entity to distribute, maintain or update a foreign adversary controlled application, naming China’s ByteDance, Ltd., TikTok, and their subsidiaries as foreign adversaries. In essence, the passing of this bill would lead ByteDance to either close TikTok or sell it. Peruse the bill in detail here.
The introduction of this bill came after concerns were raised regarding TikTok’s use of user data. It has been alleged that company executives in China could access private data. Shou Chew, TikTok’s CEO, has refuted all allegations of data misuse. The fallout from these allegations led to Montana becoming the first US state to impose a ban on TikTok.
The civil penalties proposed for contraventions to the bill’s prohibitions could lead to substantial fines, “an amount not to exceed the amount that results from multiplying $5,000 by the number of users…[who] have accessed, maintained, or updated a foreign adversary controlled application.”
The bill is drawing strong reactions from various quarters. Representative Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) and former President Donald Trump have both expressed their reservations. Bowman condemned the bill, citing concerns about restrictions on free speech and distractions from the real issue of protecting Americans’ data and privacy. Meanwhile, Trump announced his opposition to the bill, arguing that banning TikTok could potentially double the business of Facebook and “Zuckershmuch”.
TikTok aired its grievances concerning the bill on X, which used to be Twitter, saying the ban would deprive 5 million small businesses of a platform they rely on for growth and job creation. Find TikTok’s statement here.
Despite the divided opinions, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise announced that he plans to push the bill to the House for a vote next week. This legislative development stands to make a huge impact on business, data privacy, and digital content. Keep up with the latest on the subject as events unfold.