— Andrew Feinberg (@AndrewFeinberg) August 7, 2020 While incredibly popular, short-video-sharing app TikTok has long come under fire over privacy issues. It’s been banned by Joe Biden’s staff, the Navy, Army, departments of State and Homeland Security, and the TSA. A ban on federal employees downloading the app on government-issued devices may soon become law. Additionally, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman called it “fundamentally parasitic” and “spyware.” ByteDance denies the allegations and claims the data of US users is stored in the country, with backups in Singapore. … [Read more...] about Banned! Trump signs order prohibiting US transactions with TikTok and WeChat
China
US proposes a five-part “Clean Network” plan that could lead to a “splinternet”
Why it matters: Amid increasing trade tensions between China and the US, the Trump administration is looking to step up its efforts to drive Chinese tech companies out of everything from telecom infrastructure to consumer-facing apps and services. It's not clear how these plans will materialize, but if they do, they could lead to the splintering of the open and free Internet. The Trump administration has unveiled a five-part plan to remove the presence of Chinese tech companies from the American Internet. Dubbed "Clean Network," the program aims to disrupt Chinese espionage efforts and prevent any censorship decisions being made at the whim of the Chinese government. … [Read more...] about US proposes a five-part “Clean Network” plan that could lead to a “splinternet”
Google removes Indian app from the Play Store that helped in removing Chinese apps from smartphones
The anti-Chinese sentiment has recently grown in India due to cross-border tensions in the Himalayas, leading some local celebrities to call for removing apps affiliated with China. The latter has also threatened to respond with "tit-for-tat punishment from Beijing" if India continues to strain bilateral relations with its "irrational anti-China sentiment." … [Read more...] about Google removes Indian app from the Play Store that helped in removing Chinese apps from smartphones
App that detects and removes Chinese-made apps goes viral
The description goes on to say that countries of origin are detected based on market research, but there’s no guarantee that the results will be accurate. Android Authority writes that while it did detect TikTok and another Chinese-made app in its tests, PUBG Mobile, which comes from the China-based Tencent Games, was not identified. It also misses some Chinese apps that come bundled with smartphones, according to TechCrunch. … [Read more...] about App that detects and removes Chinese-made apps goes viral
The likely ‘Indian angle’ in Microsoft-TikTok deal
BENGALURU: Microsoft is chasing a deal to buy all of TikTok’s global business, including the viral video app’s operations in India and Europe, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing people with knowledge of the matter. One investor pegged the value of Tik-Tok’s India business at as much as $10 billion. Microsoft had said on Sunday that it was in negotiations with ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok and the world’s largest startup, to explore a purchase of the TikTok service in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Since then, Microsoft has also pursued a plan that will include all countries where TikTok operates, the FT said. It does not operate in China, and such a deal would not extend to its China-facing sister app Douyin, the newspaper reported. India was TikTok’s biggest market, with more than 650 million downloads, according to Sensor Tower data. But it’s been banned in the country since the end of June when the government … [Read more...] about The likely ‘Indian angle’ in Microsoft-TikTok deal
