TikTok Targeted by Federal Communications Commission

TikTok has found itself on the target of the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Its member wants the app banned. The reason is the app's privacy policy.

FCC wants TikTok banned

One of the commissioners of the FCC (the commission's leadership consists of three commissioners plus the chairman), namely Brendan Carr, has issued a letter addressed to Tim Cook (CEO of Apple) and Sundar Pichai (CEO of Alphabet and Google).

In it, he requests that TikTok be completely removed from both platforms. This would mean that the application would disappear from Google Play and App Store.

The motivation for both companies is the fact that according to Carr TikTok is in violation of Google and Apple's terms of service. Not meeting these requirements is a sufficient reason to remove the application.

What has TikTok do wrong?

Brendan Carr's request is related to the accusations that are increasingly being directed towards TikTok. The app is supposed to collect huge amounts of data about its users, including sensitive information.

This thesis has been supported by research by URL Genius. According to them no app has ever shared so much data about us with other entities as TikTok.

According to Brendan Carr, the data is said to be flowing towards China. The government in Beijing will have unlimited access to information gathered by this social networking platform.

The service was accused of gaining access to private messages and passwords. So it is supposed to be a direct threat to American citizens.

Of course, it's hard to say whether the FCC's request will translate into reality in any way. It is in fact only a request that Google and Apple do not have to comply with. However, the FCC commissioner demanded an explanation in case the companies decide not to ban the app.

It is worth mentioning that Brendan Carr speaks in his request about removing TikTok from the App Store and Google Play without distinction to individual markets. So the letter does not apply only to the US, as a large part of the world uses both stores.