Angela Lang / CNET
Chinese-owned TikTok and WeChat apps will be banned from US app stores from Sunday, the Trump administration announced on Friday Weeks of exertion by the US and Chinese authorities to reach an agreement that will allow the popular software to continue operating.
TikTok, WeChat app ban declared
The measures are part of President Donald Trump's campaign to protect American consumers and businesses from "the threats posed by the Chinese Communist Party," said US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in a statement. "At the direction of the President, we have taken significant steps to combat China's malicious collection of personal information from American citizens while promoting our national values, democratic rules-based norms, and aggressive enforcement of US laws and regulations."
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The announcement follows a call by Trump to Beijing-based ByteDance to sell TikTok or it risks being banned in the US. The administration is review a deal between Oracle and ByteDance, which would make the US company the "Trusted Technology Provider" in the US for TikTok in a way that respects national security concerns.
TikTok and WeChat are widely used around the world. TikTok, popular with teenagers, is a social networking app that allows users to post short videos that are often voiced. WeChat, owned by the Chinese tech giant Tencent, combines messaging, social media and mobile payment functions.
Due to the decision made on Friday, TikTok and WeChat can no longer be downloaded from the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store as of Sunday. People who already have the apps will no longer be able to download updates after this point. WeChat will largely cease operating in the US after Sunday, although TikTok will continue to operate through November 12 to give the company the opportunity to land a deal that will allow it to continue operating in the US.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Trump said a deal on TikTok's advances was going "very quickly" and "very, very quickly" when asked if an agreement should be reached ahead of the November US presidential election.
"We have some great options and maybe we can make a lot of people happy but have the security we need," Trump said. "We need to have total security from China."
TikTok expressed dismay at the government's decision on Friday, noting the efforts that have been made to sort things out.
"In our proposal to the US government, we are already committed to an unprecedented level of additional transparency and accountability, well beyond what other apps are ready to do, including third-party audits, code security checks and US data surveillance by the US government security, "a TikTok spokesman said in an email. "In addition, an American technology provider would be responsible for the maintenance and operation of the TikTok network in the USA, which includes all services and data for US consumers."
TikTok's future in the US has been in the air since earlier this summer after Trump targeted the app over concerns that Chinese parent company ByteDance could be forced to submit data on American users to the Chinese government. According to ByteDance, user data in the US is stored with a backup in Singapore. The company has announced that it will not disclose any data to the Chinese government upon request.
Trump signed an order banning US transactions on WeChat on Aug. 6, identifying the messaging app as a "significant" threat to national security.
The Chinese embassy pointed to a statement by the country's State Department on Friday that US politicians are "using the pretext of national security to suppress and coerce non-US companies." China, the statement said, "will strongly support the relevant companies in safeguarding their legitimate rights and interests and comply with international economic and trade rules."
"The intent of the Chinese government"
In a press conference on Friday, senior Commerce Department officials declined to give examples of TikTok or WeChat being used to spy on Americans, or cases in which Chinese government companies submitted data on US citizens.
Officials pointed out how WeChat and Douyin, TikTok's Chinese counterpart, were used for government surveillance at home, arguing that the same would be done in the US.
"Whether we have evidence domestically that these particular apps collect data is unclear," said a senior trade official. "We know what they're using for these apps overseas. We know what the Chinese government is up to here in the US."
Ross said the WeChat and TikTok threats are similar but not identical. Both are "unacceptable risks to our national security". He said the bans announced on Friday would protect US users by blocking access to the apps and significantly reducing their functionality.
As of Sunday, the commercial department will prohibit "any provision of services for the distribution or maintenance of the WeChat or TikTok mobile applications, content code or application updates via an online shop for mobile applications in the USA" and "the provision of services via the WeChat- Mobile application for transferring funds or processing payments within the US. "
Other bans come into effect on Sunday for WeChat and November 12 for TikTok, including banning "Internet hosting services that allow the Apps to work or optimize" and banning the use of the code, features or services mobile apps for operating software or services developed and / or accessible in the United States, "according to the Department of Commerce.
This means that the services in the USA cannot host any data or use servers, for example to ensure the smooth operation of the apps for American users.
Third-party services that have the same functionality as WeChat, but under a different name, are also not allowed, according to the trading department.
The same service cut-off will be for TikTok because of the Executive order of the Trump administration on August 14thByteDance has 90 days to sell TikTok to an American company. The Commerce Department said it could have taken more action against TikTok but did not want to disrupt the ongoing negotiations between the company and interested buyers.
TikTok and security updates
The lack of updates for TikTok in the next two months raises security concerns as millions of users in the United States can no longer receive security patches. TikTok has patched several times Vulnerabilities discovered in his app last year.
The Commerce Department defended its actions, saying the apps were initially unsecured due to their possible links with the Chinese government.
"The argument that we are undermining security by not allowing an untrustworthy company to push so-called security updates to apps that are untrustworthy at first sight is faltering," said a trade official. "These apps no longer have to be used in the US. To the extent that we can prevent them from being used, we take those measures through these bans."
Tencent did not respond to a request for comment. Apple and Google also didn't respond to a request for comment.
