TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew confirmed his mega-popular app is effectively Chinese Communist Party spyware and a threat to U.S. national security during testimony before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday.
Below are the three biggest revelations from the hearing, providing more than enough reason for President Biden to banish the app from America if its Chinese owners refuse to sell the company.
1. CEO Admits Chinese Engineers Have Access to American Data
When Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., asked Chew if “ByteDance employees in Beijing have access to American data,” Chew confirmed, “Yes, the Chinese engineers do have access to global data.”
Rep. Walberg: “Today, do ByteDance employees in Beijing have access to American data?”
TikTok CEO: “Yes, the Chinese engineers do have access to global data.” pic.twitter.com/I9Zgx38EuL
— Washington Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) March 23, 2023
When Walberg asked if the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has access to American data, Chew said no. However, there is an abundance of evidence proving TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is heavily controlled by the CCP, indicating the Chinese government does indeed have access to American data.
A highly comprehensive report submitted to the Australian Senate revealed ByteDance is not private, but better described as a “hybrid” state-private entity. The CCP has a stake in ByteDance, as well as a seat on its company board and its own party committee within the company.
Further evidence includes ByteDance CEO Zhang Yiming’s 2020 public apology to the Chinese government for not promoting “socialist core values,” and Forbes’ 2022 report that 300 TikTok
