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UK tech minister expresses concern over TikTok
UK tech minister expresses concern over TikTok
by AFP Staff Writers
London (AFP) Jan 23, 2025

Britain's technology minister is "genuinely concerned" about how Chinese-owned TikTok could use the data of millions of Britons, according to an interview with The Guardian newspaper published Thursday.

Britain, unlike the United States, has stopped short of calling for a ban on the social media platform, as concerns rise over how the app could be exploited by the Chinese government.

"I am genuinely concerned about the ownership model of TikTok," Peter Kyle said.

"I'm genuinely concerned about their use of data, linked to the ownership model."

He nevertheless called TikTok a "desirable product", adding that "young people should be free to explore all sorts of cultures and ideologies".

A TikTok ban law has been passed in the United States over concerns that the Chinese government could use the social media app to spy on Americans or covertly influence US public opinion through data collection and content manipulation.

Under the former administration, the United States gave TikTok's Chinese parent ByteDance the choice to sell the platform or face a ban.

The deadline for this has been extended by 75 days by new president Donald Trump.

"While there are no plans to introduce a TikTok ban in the UK... we will not hesitate to take action if necessary to protect our national security," a spokesperson for Kyle's Department for Science, Innovation and Technology told AFP.

The spokesperson added that the government was continuing "to engage TikTok, and other companies, to understand their plans for ensuring the security of UK data, and to ensure they meet the high data protection and cyber security standards we expect".

Responding to The Guardian interview, a TikTok spokesperson told AFP: "In the UK, TikTok is provided by a UK registered company, subject to UK laws and regulated by UK regulators."

"Our parent company is majority-owned by international investors, predominantly from the US."

TikTok insisted that the Chinese government has no stake in ByteDance.

The company also said it has invested �10 billion ($12 billion) to set up a data security programme in Britain and mainland Europe.

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