SUrveillance – Live Work Digital

TikTok is currently one of the most downloaded Apps in the world. It currently has around a billion monthly active users. So, what is it? In short, it is a platform where people can upload short form video content. It is a little like YouTube, but the videos only go for 60 seconds. In recent times, the company has been under the spotlight because of its links to China. So much so that the US Government is looking to ban the company from operating in America. So, what are the issues with it? Why is there so much fear surrounding the company if it is so popular around the world? The platform is already banned in India, Bangladesh and Malaysia and there is increasing concern that it also provides a security risk in Australia. Why is there so much concern about this particular social media platform which is not only predominantly used by teenagers but also growing in the older demographics.

The company is owned by a Chinese group called Bytedance who launched in China in 2012. By 2017, it took over a relatively small company called Musicly which had slowly been growing in the US market since it began in 2014. Here lies the main reason causing concern for the US Government. Essentially, Musicly was not on the radar in the US until Bytedance took it over. The company merged under the TikTok name and the popularity of the platform skyrocketed.

Suddenly this brought the company into the focus of the US Government regulators. From this point, people started to realise the significance of its reach. The company had a social media presence in the US, with 180 million users on it worldwide. People started to ask questions on how it all happened. How was the company able to operate in the country without any oversite or approval? The answer to this question is simple. They didn’t ask. They must have gone through the appropriate legal process, but it seemed that, because no one was looking, they went and did it anyway.

The difference between TikTok and the others is that this platform uses information that is garnered through peoples interests and choices rather than just socially connected links. What this means is that the intelligence behind the platform, remembers places, locations, type of content watched and so on and so forth. This builds a story and a picture of the person’s life and it starts immediately after the App has been downloaded and the profile is set up. With the content being short, a lot of information can be harvested quickly as people watch more and more video clips.

So how can a social media platform be a security risk? How can we let platforms control so much of our data? The answer to this is that we allow it. When someone signs on, not only do they enter in all their relevant requested details, but they also click yes to the terms and conditions of using the platform. This opens the door for the data to be collected.

Bytedance, the company, continuously argues that all personal information is safe and that it is not given to the Chinese Government. They point out that their servers are stored in the US and in Singapore. Interestingly enough however, deep in the TikTok website, there is a note that says information can be potentially be shared with Bytedance and any of its affiliates. Of course, because all users of the App have already agreed on the Terms and Conditions of the platform, it leaves the door open.

The question we ask ourselves in Australia is whether we also should be looking to ban the platform. As from February 2020 there were 1.6 million Australians who were already using it. The mood seems to be a very cautious approach by the federal government with Scott Morrison flagging that there is “no reason” currently to look at banning TikTok. He does acknowledge that there is risk for personal data to be sent to Beijing and “Australians need to be very aware” of such platforms.

However, there are some very serious concerns that are being raised by cyber security experts in Australia who warn of the dangers of not being vigilant with personal information online. They warn that the difference between this and other social media platforms is that there are no guarantees that the information isn’t being spied on by the Chinese state. TikTok continues to spruik how safe their App is and at the same time has set up offices in Sydney . It looks like they’re here for the long haul. So, for the moment, we will watch this space. Maybe we may even dance a bit along the way.