TikTok says it's open to talk with Amazon about why it made the decision.
What you need to know
The popular social network app TikTok just can't seem to catch a break. Following relentless pushback from both India and the United States, is now reporting that Amazon is requiring all of its employees to delete TikTok from any phones that are connected to their Amazon work emails.
Per the report:
Amazon is citing "security risks" for its reasoning behind this decision, though no specifics about those risks are mentioned. TikTok responded to the move, saying:
For some perspective as to what kind of implications this has for TikTok's userbase, there are roughly 500,000 Amazon employees in the United States. That's not to say every single employee has (well, had) the TikTok app on their phone, but it's still a good chunk of people.
If you've been keeping your eyes on news headlines over the past week or so, you'll know this is far from the first time TikTok has found itself in the hot seat. It all started on June 29 when and 58 other Chinese apps from the country, with the Indian government saying that the apps are, "prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defense of India, security of state, and public order."
United States Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, told Fox News on July 7 that the U.S. government was also in the country. Tensions are high between the U.S. and China, with the recent attacks on TikTok being the latest result of that.
TikTok has repeatedly said that it respects user privacy and data, but that doesn't seem to have helped it at all. We've even started to see this worry trickle down to individual users, with Fortnite streamer Tyler "Ninja" Blevins and was looking for a "less intrusive company (data farming)" app that "isn't owned by China."
This latest move from Amazon will likely be far from the last of this ongoing feud between TikTok and the U.S., so we'll have to keep our eyes peeled for what happens from here.
What you need to know
- Amazon is requiring that its employees delete the TikTok app from their smartphones.
- The company calls out "security risks" as the reason for its decision.
- TikTok has found itself at the center of endless scrutiny as of late.
The popular social network app TikTok just can't seem to catch a break. Following relentless pushback from both India and the United States, is now reporting that Amazon is requiring all of its employees to delete TikTok from any phones that are connected to their Amazon work emails.
Per the report:
Amazon is citing "security risks" for its reasoning behind this decision, though no specifics about those risks are mentioned. TikTok responded to the move, saying:
For some perspective as to what kind of implications this has for TikTok's userbase, there are roughly 500,000 Amazon employees in the United States. That's not to say every single employee has (well, had) the TikTok app on their phone, but it's still a good chunk of people.
If you've been keeping your eyes on news headlines over the past week or so, you'll know this is far from the first time TikTok has found itself in the hot seat. It all started on June 29 when and 58 other Chinese apps from the country, with the Indian government saying that the apps are, "prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defense of India, security of state, and public order."
United States Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, told Fox News on July 7 that the U.S. government was also in the country. Tensions are high between the U.S. and China, with the recent attacks on TikTok being the latest result of that.
TikTok has repeatedly said that it respects user privacy and data, but that doesn't seem to have helped it at all. We've even started to see this worry trickle down to individual users, with Fortnite streamer Tyler "Ninja" Blevins and was looking for a "less intrusive company (data farming)" app that "isn't owned by China."
This latest move from Amazon will likely be far from the last of this ongoing feud between TikTok and the U.S., so we'll have to keep our eyes peeled for what happens from here.