TikTok Does Not Share Its Servers With ByteDance, Says Chief Security Officer

The US government has been placing a lot of pressure on TikTok, and a big part of the reason why that is the case has to do with the fact that the current administration is wary of the fact that the app originated in China and since the Chinese government requires local apps to provide them with any kind of data that they ask for, the US government is wary that this could make it rather easy for the foreign government to end up spying on American citizens.

TikTok’s global chief security officer has Roland P. Cloutier has stated that the claims that TikTok shares data and information with its parent company ByteDance and its sister platform Douyin, which is basically the version of TikTok used in China, is not accurate. He has stated that TikTok’s servers are separate from those of ByteDance or Douyin, which means that all user data as well as the source code for the app would not be accessible to either the parent company or the sister app.

Another issue that the US government has had with the app is that it outsources data storage to Singaporean and Chinese service providers, something that might further pose a risk to a wide range of users. Cloutier has attempted to clear things up by stating that while TikTok does, in fact, use space in the China Unicom Americas building in the US to set up its servers, the servers themselves are entirely owned by TikTok which means that no one else is going to be able to access this data once all has been said and is now out of the way.

It is unknown if this would sway the US government and revert the ban on the app, but TikTok is certainly fighting tooth and nail to keep its holdings intact.

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