Vers a new scandal for TikTok? The famous application, already singled out in the past for the disregard it made of the personal data of its users, is the target of new accusations. Employees of ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, based in China would have had access, on multiple occasions, to the personal data of American users.
The BuzzFeed site has had access to audio leaks from nearly 80 internal meetings of the company during which American employees turn to their colleagues in China to determine how user data flows in the United States. According to the records, US personnel did not have permission to access the data or did not know how.
Deception?
“I have the impression that these tools almost all have a backdoor to access user data,” said an external auditor hired by the company to provide an update on the security of personal data. These records would also prove that the company may have misled lawmakers, its users and the public by downplaying that data stored in the United States could still be viewed by employees in China. Asked by BuzzFeed about these practices, the company said it “aims to remove any doubts about the security of US user data”. “That’s why we engage experts in their fields, continually work to validate our security standards, and engage independent, reputable third parties to test our defenses. Without further comment.
