'Uncle Sam is very afraid, somehow there is no such thing. He just did it badly.'
The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Chris Wray, outlined national security concerns with ByteDance's TikTok app allegedly channeling the data of United States (US) users into the hands of Chinese communists.
According to a statement filed with the US legislature, Wray said the probability of China using TikTok to control data collection or recommendation algorithms to influence their operations is high.
The US police director added that there is a possibility that the Beijing government is using TikTok to 'control the software of millions of users' and provide an opportunity to 'technically compromise' the device.
In general, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which is responsible for reviewing potential national security risks from foreign firms, has issued a warning to ByteDance to block TikTok.
This is because in 2020 TikTok is said to have handed over its user data to the Chinese communist government and since then the two have held discussions to reach an agreement about national security.
So far TikTok executive Vanessa Papas has said the deal has entered the final phase when presenting an update before Congress.
Going back to Wray, he seemed so worried about the influence of the Chinese government on firms from that country which he described as 'a very irritating thing'.
Looking at the previous record, former President Donald Trump is one of the individuals who loudly voiced concerns about the influence of Chinese applications and even tried to block WeChat and TikTok in 2020.
