“TikTok does not collect precise GPS location information from U.S. users, meaning TikTok could not monitor U.S. users in the way the article suggested,” wrote the company’s official comms handle on Twitter. The company further stresses that the app has never been used to track sensitive subjects like politicians, journalists, and activists, among other influential figures.
While TikTok’s dismissal of the Forbes report is spirited, recent investigations have actually painted a rather grim picture of the company’s privacy practices. According to a BuzzFeed investigation earlier this year which cited internal audio recordings, TikTok engineers in China have accessed non-public data based in the United States. “Everything is seen in China,” a member of TikTok’s Trust and Safety team was quoted as saying.
2/ Specifically, Forbes chose not to include the portion of our statement that disproved the feasibility of its core allegation: TikTok does not collect precise GPS location information from US users, meaning TikTok could not monitor US users in the way the article suggested.
— TikTokComms (@TikTokComms) October 20, 2022
Earlier this year, TikTok announced that it had set up a new team called U.S. Data Security that would limit who can access the data of users based in the United States and that all data access requests will first pass through tight protocols and oversight. TikTok has also decided to store the data of U.S.-based users on local cloud servers provided by Oracle.
Interestingly, the Oracle deal came in the wake of increasing pressure from the U.S. government over data security concerns and localization of user information, along with a tangible risk of getting banned in the country. In fact, TikTok continues to be banned in India – one of its largest markets — over similar national security concerns.
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