Yesterday, as the CEO of the China-based TikTok app testified before the House, Senator Thom Tillis (R-Cornelius, NC) called out members of Congress, including North Carolina’s delegation, who still use the app despite knowing the national security and privacy risks it poses to North Carolinians: “China is one of the biggest geopolitical threats America has ever faced. It’s beyond reckless for members of Congress to still be encouraging their constituents to use TikTok despite knowing the Chinese Communist Party is mining all their personal info. Protecting Americans from the CCP is more important than getting views. I call on all members of Congress to lead by example and stop using it.”
This week, Senator Tillis co-sponsored two bills to rein in the China-based spyware app. The bipartisan ANTI-SOCIAL CCP Act would protect Americans by blocking and prohibiting all transactions from any social media company in, or under the influence of, China, Russia, and several other foreign countries of concern. The bipartisan Restricting the Emergence of Security Threats that Risk Information and Communications Technology (RESTRICT) Act addresses the ongoing threat posed by technology from foreign adversaries like China by empowering the Department of Commerce to review, prevent, and mitigate information communications and technology transactions that pose undue risk to our national security, including potentially banning TikTok.