Yintao Yu, a former executive at ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok has made a significant accusation in a legal document. During his tenure as the head of ByteDance's US engineering team from 2017 to 2018, Yu claimed that officials at the Chinese Communist Party had obtained personal data from civil rights activists residing in Hong Kong, who were users of TikTok. This allegation surfaces at a moment when lawmakers have been expressing mounting apprehension regarding the app's potential security risks.
In a wrongful termination lawsuit filed in May, Yu voiced his grievances against his former company. In a recent court filing, a new allegation came to light. As per the filing, the committee of the Chinese Communist Party reportedly acquired and compiled the communication data, IDs of their SIM, and IP addresses of individuals in Hong Kong, specifically targeting political activists.
TikTok has refuted the claims made by Yu and has expressed its disagreement with what it considers to be unfounded accusations. The company highlighted that Yu took 5 years after the wrongful termination to bring up these concerns, suggesting that they lack credibility.
Earlier this year Yu's lawyer made a decision to initiate the legal claim following Chew, the TikTok CEO's testimony before Congress. Chew denied any connection between the app and the leaking of any personal data that the government of China might've acquired. This compelled Yu to come forward and contradict Chew's statements. Currently, Forbes' attempts to obtain a comment from TikTok have been met with silence as the company has chosen not to respond.
In the midst of increasing worries regarding the protection of TikTok's data, particularly among lawmakers in the United States, a noteworthy development has emerged. Yu, a former employee who was dismissed from TikTok in 2018, has made allegations in a separate legal filing related to his wrongful termination case. According to Yu, his termination was a result of voicing concerns about a scheme intended to unlawfully appropriate and gain financial benefits with the misuse, and leaking of intellectual assets of various organizations. Furthermore, the legal complaint alleges that Beijing-based ByteDance's offices engaged with individuals linked to the Chinese Communist Party who actively supervised the company's applications and held the power to fully deactivate them at their discretion.
Lawmakers in the United States have displayed significant skepticism towards TikTok, raising doubts about the safety of American users' data. During a congressional hearing in March, TikTok's CEO, Shou Zi Chew, faced intense scrutiny as he consistently refuted allegations of the Chinese Communist Party's access to TikTok data in the US. Experts have voiced apprehensions regarding the potential national security risks posed by the app, its data collection practices, and the potential influence it may have on the content shown to American users.
Moreover, the concerns surrounding TikTok's security have not been limited to the federal level alone. Last month, the state of Montana took measures to ban the app citing concerns related to data privacy, leading to legal actions initiated by TikTok and its users.
In summary, Yintao Yu's accusations of Chinese Communist Party access to TikTok user data in Hong Kong have heightened concerns about the app's security. TikTok has denied the claims, but lawmakers and experts remain skeptical. The state of Montana has even banned the app due to data privacy concerns, leading to legal disputes. The issue of TikTok's data security continues to be a subject of scrutiny and legal action.
Read next: Don't Let Your Passwords Get Hacked: NordPass Reveals the 10 Most Common Passwords to Avoid in 2023
In a wrongful termination lawsuit filed in May, Yu voiced his grievances against his former company. In a recent court filing, a new allegation came to light. As per the filing, the committee of the Chinese Communist Party reportedly acquired and compiled the communication data, IDs of their SIM, and IP addresses of individuals in Hong Kong, specifically targeting political activists.
TikTok has refuted the claims made by Yu and has expressed its disagreement with what it considers to be unfounded accusations. The company highlighted that Yu took 5 years after the wrongful termination to bring up these concerns, suggesting that they lack credibility.
Earlier this year Yu's lawyer made a decision to initiate the legal claim following Chew, the TikTok CEO's testimony before Congress. Chew denied any connection between the app and the leaking of any personal data that the government of China might've acquired. This compelled Yu to come forward and contradict Chew's statements. Currently, Forbes' attempts to obtain a comment from TikTok have been met with silence as the company has chosen not to respond.
In the midst of increasing worries regarding the protection of TikTok's data, particularly among lawmakers in the United States, a noteworthy development has emerged. Yu, a former employee who was dismissed from TikTok in 2018, has made allegations in a separate legal filing related to his wrongful termination case. According to Yu, his termination was a result of voicing concerns about a scheme intended to unlawfully appropriate and gain financial benefits with the misuse, and leaking of intellectual assets of various organizations. Furthermore, the legal complaint alleges that Beijing-based ByteDance's offices engaged with individuals linked to the Chinese Communist Party who actively supervised the company's applications and held the power to fully deactivate them at their discretion.
Lawmakers in the United States have displayed significant skepticism towards TikTok, raising doubts about the safety of American users' data. During a congressional hearing in March, TikTok's CEO, Shou Zi Chew, faced intense scrutiny as he consistently refuted allegations of the Chinese Communist Party's access to TikTok data in the US. Experts have voiced apprehensions regarding the potential national security risks posed by the app, its data collection practices, and the potential influence it may have on the content shown to American users.
Moreover, the concerns surrounding TikTok's security have not been limited to the federal level alone. Last month, the state of Montana took measures to ban the app citing concerns related to data privacy, leading to legal actions initiated by TikTok and its users.
In summary, Yintao Yu's accusations of Chinese Communist Party access to TikTok user data in Hong Kong have heightened concerns about the app's security. TikTok has denied the claims, but lawmakers and experts remain skeptical. The state of Montana has even banned the app due to data privacy concerns, leading to legal disputes. The issue of TikTok's data security continues to be a subject of scrutiny and legal action.
Read next: Don't Let Your Passwords Get Hacked: NordPass Reveals the 10 Most Common Passwords to Avoid in 2023
