After all, TikTok may not be banned in the United States. A plan to force the sale of the social network’s US operations has been shelved “indefinitely” while President Joe Biden reviews possible security risks for Chinese tech companies, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The White House on Wednesday called for a delay in the government’s appeal of the December injunction by a federal district court judge against the ban, the newspaper said, citing “people familiar with the situation.” No imminent action is expected.
“We plan to develop a comprehensive approach to securing American data that addresses the full range of threats we face,” National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne told the Journal. “This includes the risk posed by Chinese applications and other software operating in the United States. In the coming months, we hope to review specific cases in light of a comprehensive understanding of the risks we face.”
It’s been six months since Donald Trump called ByteDance and its TikTok app a threat to national security and ordered the company to sell its US-based business. In September, the former president gave preliminary approval for a special agreement between Walmart and Oracle to create the national entity known as “TikTok Global.” However, no further moves have been made since he took over the new administration.
“Generally speaking, […] we are thoroughly assessing the risks to US data, including TikTok, and will address them decisively and effectively,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said at a conference call. press on Wednesday. “If we have news to announce, we will announce it.”
