TikTok confirms it offered US Government a 'kill switch'
TikTok offered a "kill switch" to the US government amid data protection concerns. Legal disputes continue as ByteDance faces pressure to sell TikTok's US assets by January to avoid a ban.
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TikTok has confirmed offering the US government a "kill switch" to address concerns over data protection and national security. This offer was made in 2022 as a response to legislation threatening to ban the app unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells it. TikTok and ByteDance are challenging this law in court, arguing it goes against the tradition of an open internet. The proposed "kill switch" would have allowed the US government to suspend TikTok in the US if certain rules were violated, including data protection measures and restricting ByteDance's access to US user data. Despite these efforts, the US government has not engaged in serious settlement talks and signed legislation giving ByteDance until January to divest TikTok's US assets or face a ban. TikTok denies sharing foreign users' data with China but investigations have shown data sharing between TikTok in the US and ByteDance in China. The situation remains contentious, with ongoing legal battles and national security concerns at the forefront.
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