TikTok has taken out full page ads in newspapers along with placing ads through social media asking to ‘Don’t make Tiktok a political football.’
TikTok Australia has claimed the app is “one of Australia’s most loved” after the social media giant has recently had its privacy and user data gathering and usage questioned. The company states though that Australian user data is stored in Singapore and the United States, while they are working to minimise access across regions.
TikTok Australia has sent letters to Federal MPs outlining that TikTok is independent and not aligned with any Government, political party or ideology. Lee Hunter, GM of TikTok Australia has stated as part of the letter, that:
We are a privately owned company, and TikTok is focused on enabling people to make and share creative and fun videos. We strive to be a platform that is both safe and fun to use, and we prioritise protecting the security of our users’ data.
The truth is, TikTok is a fun and engaging platform for sharing creative expression through video – that is being used by some as a political football.
TikTok have also released a video outlining the issues that have been floated and bandied about in the media recently including bans in various countries like India and possible bans of the app here locally which you can view below:
[videopress wO3VL3k0]
Hunter has also said that TikTok already has multiple safety measures in place for consumers, and they are continuing to invest in making it even safer. They are looking to meet with policy makers to talk about TikTokand demonstrate the steps that they are taking to “make it an even safer and more creative place”.
TikTok Australia user data is stored in Singapore, and our Chief Information Security Officer has outlined our efforts to minimise data access across regions. Similar to industry peers, we will continue to drive our goal of limiting the number of employees who have access to user data and the scenarios where data access is enabled. Although we already have controls in place to protect user data, we will continue to focus on adding new technologies and programs focused on global data residency, data movement, and data storage access protections worldwide.
TikTok Australia has said that it takes personal security and personal data seriously and it has released a blog post about it and their new transparency report here.
It is unsure if this new public relations move will help abate calls for the app to be looked into and a possible ban being placed for the app, especially given the current political climate. The proactive move by TikTok is a lot more than other social media websites we have seen perform when they have had their privacy and security measures questioned but it remains to be seen if it helps them.
Surely we cannot ban every app made in China? What do you think they need to do for you to be able to trust them?
