TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is set to testify before the US House of Representatives panel on March 23rd to address concerns regarding the popular Chinese-owned video app’s efforts to protect children from inappropriate content and potential exploitation. This comes after the Biden administration threatened to ban the app if its Chinese owners did not sell their stakes in the company.
Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers and other lawmakers have raised concerns about TikTok’s algorithm that force-feeds inappropriate content to children and the app’s live stream events that allow adult users to offer monetary rewards to persuade children to perform sexually suggestive acts. Rodgers has demanded that TikTok explain the actions they are taking to keep kids safe from online and offline harm.
TikTok has recently announced a few features to help users limit the amount of time spent on the app, including a tool that allows parents to prevent their teens from viewing content containing certain words or hashtags. Accounts belonging to users under 18 will also automatically have a time limit of one hour per day, and teens will need to enter a passcode to continue using the app.
However, the US government remains concerned about TikTok’s user data being passed on to China’s government. TikTok has been negotiating with the Biden administration for more than two years on data security requirements and claims to have spent more than $1.5 billion on rigorous data security efforts while rejecting spying allegations. The Biden administration’s demand for divestiture was the most dramatic in a series of recent steps by US officials and legislators. TikTok did not immediately comment on the matter.
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