TikTok users in the US are waiting with baited breath to see what the outcome of a potential ban of the app will be as the President Joe Biden administration continues to demand that the app’s owners, ByteDance, sell some of their stake.
Though the US government has offered no evidence that the Chinese government has accessed user data from TikTok, which is the main reason for the ban, their concerns about the security of consumer information in the hands of the company are not unfounded.
Employees of ByteDance, owners of TikTok, have in the past reportedly accessed US user data, and the Department of Justice (DoJ) and the FBI have launched an investigation into allegations that some ByteDance employees had obtained TikTok user data to investigate the source of leaks to US journalists.
Already, the US, the UK and Canada have banned employees from the use of TikTok on government-owned devices.
Italy is also probing allegation of dangerous content against TikTok.
TikTok, on the other hand, has reassured advertisers that the app is unlikely to be banned in the US.
South Africa
A ban in South Africa is not on the cards yet.
In July 2021, South Africa enacted the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) which states that any organisation which manages personal data needs to comply with the Act to remain compliant or face fines by the Information Regulator.
Not abiding by the act can attract fines in the range of R1 million to R10 million rand and/or a prison sentence.
With the TikTok ban centred around the issue of data protection, and South Africa being stringent on the issue as seen by the passing of the POPIA Act, it will be interesting to see whether the country will follow the US route in banning the up should cases of data breaches via the app be reported.
