Australia Puts TikTok Under Scanner Over Potential Threat

Government sources told Reuters that Australia is scrutinizing the popular Chinese-owned social media TikTok platform for any risks it may pose to users from around potential foreign interference and data privacy issues.

The sources said, owned by Bytedance, TikTok opened an office in Australia in recent weeks and offices of both the Home Affairs and Attorney-General are discussing TikTok’s operations.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said his government was “having a good look” at TikTok. Morrison told Melbourne radio station 3AW on Friday that “If we consider there is a need to take further action than we are taking now, then I can tell you we won’t be shy about it”.

Last week, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern posted a video with an impersonator on the highly popular social media app.

Separately, Labor Senator Jenny McAllister, the chairwoman of a parliamentary inquiry into foreign interference through social media, has identified TikTok as needing further scrutiny, noting 1.6 million young Australians using the app.

She told ABC radio, “Some of these approaches to moderating content might be inconsistent with Australian values”.

“For example, removing material about Tiananmen Square, or deprioritising material about Hong Kong protests,” she added, referring to student protests in Beijing in 1989 and pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong over the past year.

Company records seen by Reuters showed two of the three directors of the new Australian TikTok operation are senior executives of Chinese parent company ByteDance.

TikTok Australia general manager Lee Hunter, who was recruited from Google in June, has written to Australian politicians saying TikTok was “being used as a political football.”

Adding TikTok Australia’s data was stored securely in Singapore and the United States the letter said, it was “critical you understand that we are independent and not aligned with any government, political party or ideology”.