TikTok and parent ByteDance call security concerns in US divest-or-ban law 'speculative'

TikTok and parent firm ByteDance depicted the security concerns raised by American lawmakers and government officials about the short video platform as purely "speculative" and without evidence to validate accusations against the popular app.

That description was made in a legal brief filed on Thursday by TikTok and ByteDance, which asserted that the basis of the US divest-or-ban law against the popular social media app "falls short of what the First Amendment requires".

The brief was filed to the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, which had ordered the legal challenges against that new law set for oral arguments in September after TikTok, ByteDance and a group of the app's content creators joined with the US Department of Justice in May in asking the court for a quick schedule.

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TikTok in a letter on Thursday also accused the Biden administration of engaging in "political demagoguery" during high-stakes negotiations between the government and the company, as the social media platform sought to relieve concerns about its presence in the US.

US President Joe Biden speaks after signing a foreign aid bill and a measure to ban TikTok in the country at the White House in Washington on April 24, 2024. Photo: Agence France-Presse alt=US President Joe Biden speaks after signing a foreign aid bill and a measure to ban TikTok in the country at the White House in Washington on April 24, 2024. Photo: Agence France-Presse>

The legal brief reflects the confidence of TikTok and ByteDance in their much-anticipated challenge to the new law, which set a January 19 deadline for ByteDance to divest the US operations of TikTok or face a blanket ban across all app stores in the country.

The two plaintiffs also dismissed allegations about China's influence in the short video app's operations in the US.

"The suggestion that China would seek to acquire such data through the roundabout method of demanding it from TikTok's owners, while evading TikTok's measures to block such efforts ... is both speculative and counterintuitive", according to the legal brief published on TikTok's official site.

Citing one example, the brief said the US House Committee report in March "offered no evidence of TikTok disclosing user data to Chinese authorities, just a general claim that China 'can require' companies to surrender their data".

It also asserted that some of the concerns raised were based on "hypothetical future messages", including Democratic Senator Mark Warner's comment in a March interview that "TikTok videos will be promoting that Taiwan ought to be part of China".

A TikTok content creator sits outside the US Capitol in Washington on April 23, 2024. Photo: AP alt=A TikTok content creator sits outside the US Capitol in Washington on April 23, 2024. Photo: AP>

TikTok and ByteDance reiterated how a divestment under the new law would be impossible owing to Beijing's opposition.

"The Chinese government regulates the transfer of technologies developed in China," the legal brief said. "The Chinese government has made it clear in public statements that it would not permit a forced divestment of [TikTok's] recommendation engine."

The US Court of Appeals has ordered the Justice Department to file its legal brief by July 26, with reply briefs due by August 15. TikTok and the Justice Department have sought a ruling by December 6 to seek review from the Supreme Court if needed.

A third legal challenge against the US divest-or-ban law was filed on June 6 by the Liberty Justice Centre, representing conservative group Based Politics that posts videos on TikTok.

In spite of TikTok's potential ban in the US market, ByteDance has been diversifying its social media products. Earlier this month, ByteDance rolled out photo-sharing app Whee on both Apple's iOS and Android platforms. It is not yet available for download in the US. In April, ByteDance launched TikTok Notes for users to upload photos.

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2024 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

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