TikTok emphasized the claims made by a top House official last week regarding security concerns related to the social media platform.
The company sent a letter Thursday to the House’s chief administrative officer, Katherine Sjpindor, which was obtained by Politico. The company wrote that its “TikTok cyber advisory” contained false information and needed to be rescinded. The advisor warned lawmakers about the security risks with the platform.
When asked for confirmation, a TikTok spokesperson said that the letter published by Politico “appears to be authentic.”
Szpindor’s office said in the memo that the office considers TikTok as a high risk because it “excessively permits” people to use the app due to a lack of transparency about how it protects user data. There are potential security risks associated with the requirement and its use.
The office concluded that members of Congress should not download or use the app because of these security and privacy concerns.
The memo said that the app stores users’ data location, photos and other personally identifiable information in servers in China, but TikTok denied in its letter, saying that it would not be able to access its data in the United States and Singapore. Stores information in own data centers.
Michael Beckerman, vice president and head of public policy in the US for TikTok, said in the letter that all US user traffic is being directed to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure and the company expects to completely remove users’ personal information from data centers . US Oracle Cloud Server Pivot in
He denied claims in the memo that the platform uses facial recognition technology or uses facial and voice data to identify users.
Beckerman said TikTok does not automatically collect accurate GPS location data, as stated in the memo. The letter states that the company collects the approximate location of users based on their SIM cards and IP addresses, which helps to improve the user experience, comply with local laws and prevent fraud.
He added that TikTok does not collect information such as SIM card serial numbers, active subscription information or integrated circuit card identification numbers.
Beckerman said he would like to meet with Szpindor to discuss the information in the letter from TikTok.
Szpindor’s memo comes as a large number of lawmakers have started using TikTok to deliver messages and reach new demographics ahead of November’s midterm elections.
Nearly every Democratic lawmaker voted for a provision in last year’s defense policy bill that bars government employees from using TikTok on any government-issued device, but several caucus members have posted content on the platform.