By Daan Kingma.
TikTok has become an archetypical example of Chinese digital companies going global. Its connection to China, however, has led to unprecedented scrutiny over the company’s policies regarding data collection and privacy, content moderation, and recommendation algorithms. This policy brief takes a closer look at the concrete risks posed by the app, specifically its alleged CCP connection, its perceived cyber security risks, and the subjection of its parent company to Chinese security legislation.
Drawing from several earlier reports into TikTok’s alleged China connection, it finds that none of the risks ascribed to TikTok have been sufficiently substantiated to warrant an all-out ban that some EU policy makers and security analysts argue for. Rather, this policy brief recommends that the EU should apply its existing stringent regulatory framework for data services, which provides solutions
for all of the concerns raised with regard to TikTok.
