#Pompeo says US may ban Chinese apps, including TikTok

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US is “certainly looking at” banning TikTok and other Chinese social media apps amid concerns that their content and the data they collect from users’ devices are shared with the Chinese Communist Party.

“I don’t want to get out in front of (President Trump), but it’s something we’re looking at,” Pompeo said in an interview with Fox News on Monday. “We are taking this very seriously. We are certainly looking at it.”

US lawmakers have voiced national security concerns over the short-form video app’s handling of user data, saying they were worried about Chinese laws requiring domestic companies “to support and cooperate with intelligence work controlled by the Chinese Communist Party,” Reuters reported.

The top US diplomat said Americans should be careful using the app, which is owned by China-based ByteDance.

“Only if you want your private information in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party,” Pompeo said when asked if he would recommend people to download TikTok.

TikTok insisted that it has never provided user data to the Chinese state.

“We have no higher priority than promoting a safe and secure app experience for our users. We have never provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would we do so if asked”, TikTok told Reuters in an email.

TikTok has sought to appeal to a global audience and is not available in China.

The app was recently banned in India along with 58 other Chinese apps after a border clash with China.

TikTok also said Tuesday that it will stop its operations in Hong Kong, after Beijing established a sweeping new national security law for the semi-autonomous territory.

With Post wires