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The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday urged the U.S. government to ban the social media platform TikTok over how the China-based app handles American users’ data.
Brendan Carr, the leader of the five-seat FCC board, told Axios the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) should ban the platform over its failure to secure users’ data.
“I don’t believe there is a path forward for anything other than a ban,” Carr said.
He has previously spoken out about Chinese telecom companies, including Huawei and TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance.
Two years ago, the FCC adopted rules that require U.S. telecom carriers to remove and replace equipment produced by Huawei, ZTE and other entities because they pose an unacceptable national security risk.
Although the FCC has no authority to regulate TikTok, Congress passed a bill in 2021 giving the commission the jurisdiction to secure American telecommunications from foreign threats.
Carr’s admonition comes as TikTok is negotiating with CFIUS, a U.S. government committee that handles national security reviews of deals with foreign companies. Reportedly at the center of the talks is whether the platform will be still allowed to operate in the U.S. if its current owner ByteDance sells the social media platform to an American company.
TikTok fired back, arguing Carr has no say in the talks with CFIUS over the app.
“Commissioner Carr has no role in the confidential discussions with the U.S. government related to TikTok and appears to be expressing views independent of his role as an FCC commissioner,” Brooke Oberwetter, a TikTok spokesperson, said in a statement to ABC News.
“We are confident that we are on a path to reaching an agreement with the U.S. government that will satisfy all reasonable national security concerns,” Oberwetter added.
The Biden administration and TikTok have outlined a preliminary deal, but it has not been finalized, The New York Times reported in September. The outlet noted the Justice Department is leading the talks, but Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco was concerned the current terms were not tough enough on China.
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