The US Department of Justice is investigating ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, for spying on US citizens, including several journalists.
ByteDance is based in Beijing, is based in the Cayman Islands and is said to be close to the Chinese communist government.
The company admitted in December that it had improperly acquired the data of US TikTok users, including at least two reporters, according to the New York Times.
Forbes Reporter Emily Baker-White, who broke the story, wrote that she was one of the journalists whose data was taken.
It comes as the Biden administration threatens to ban TikTok in the US unless its Chinese owner sells its shares in the app.
The Justice Department declined to comment on the investigation.
The US Department of Justice is investigating ByteDance, the Chinese company that owns TikTok, for spying on US citizens, including several journalists
ByteDance claims that employees who were allegedly spying on people were fired after they tried to uncover leaked sources of internal discussions within the company.
Two of the employees worked in the Beijing office. The company claims that it is working to prevent the actions from happening again.
The news broke the same day that a bipartisan group of six senators backed legislation to give President Joe Biden new powers to ban the Chinese-owned video app TikTok.
Earlier this month, 12 senators led by Democrat Mark Warner and Republican John Thune unveiled White House-backed legislation to give the Commerce Department new powers to address concerns about TikTok, which has more than 100 million US users
The announcement comes after TikTok said this week that the Biden administration had required its Chinese owners to divest their stake in the company or face a possible US ban.
The lawsuit was filed by the United States Committee on Foreign Investment and specifies that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, sell its stake in the US version of the app.
It’s unclear if federal officials have given ByteDance a deadline to sell.
Hilary McQuaide, a spokeswoman for TikTok, confirmed to DaiyMail.com that the lawsuit was filed, but suggested the changes would not increase data security for US citizens.
ByteDance is based in Beijing, is based in the Cayman Islands and is said to be close to the Chinese communist government. The Biden administration has threatened to ban TikTok in the US unless its Chinese owner sells its shares in the app.
Pictured: Attorney General Merrick Garland. The Justice Department declined to comment on the investigation.
The Biden administration has threatened to ban TikTok in the US unless its Chinese owner ByteDance sells its shares in the app. In the photo, Shou Zi Chew, CEO of TikTok.
The demand was made by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US, chaired by Janet Yellen, Secretary of the Treasury.
“If the goal is to protect national security, divestment does not solve the problem: a change in ownership would not place new restrictions on data flows or access,” it said in a statement.
“National security concerns are best addressed with transparent, US-based protection of US user data and systems, with robust monitoring, investigation, and third-party verification , which we are already implementing,” he added.
TikTok critics have said that Chinese laws require Chinese-owned companies to share data with the Chinese government.
Instead, the firm is proposing a $1.5 billion security plan, dubbed Project Texas, that would see US user data protected and monitored by Texas-based Oracle.
The plan would include independent monitors and auditors to ensure that neither ByteDance nor Chinese officials can access certain data.
The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) is an interagency committee that oversees national security risks posed by foreign investment. It is chaired by Janet Yellen, Secretary of the Treasury, but its members include the heads of the departments of justice, defense, state and energy.
TikTok critics have said that Chinese laws require Chinese-owned companies to share data with the Chinese government.
ByteDance staff walk past the ByteDance headquarters building in Beijing in 2020. Its executives say that 60 percent of its shares are owned by foreign investors.
In 2020, President Trump (pictured in 2020) gave the Chinese company ByteDance 90 days to dispose of any assets used to support the popular app TikTok in the United States. His administration’s efforts were blocked in court.
TikTok executives have said ByteDance’s shares are 60 percent owned by global investors, 20 percent by employees and 20 percent by its founders, according to the report. Wall Street Journalwho first reported on the lawsuit.
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will testify before the House Committee on Commerce and Energy next Thursday.
This request comes after a dozen US senators introduced a bipartisan bill last week giving President Biden the authority to ban TikTok nationwide.
The Restriction Act would allow the US Department of Commerce to declare companies with foreign ties national security risks.
Last December, the Senate passed a bill to ban TikTok on government devices.
In 2020, the Trump administration threatened to ban TikTok unless the app was sold to an American company. Those efforts were thwarted when ByteDance went to court to challenge the ban.
He argued that it would be a violation of the Berman amendments, which allow the free flow of “information material” from hostile countries.