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I see this line of reasoning often, and frankly, I don’t understand it at all. TikTok poses exactly the same risk as any other app on the App/Play stores. They

I see this line of reasoning often, and frankly, I don’t understand it at all. TikTok poses exactly the same risk as any other app on the App/Play stores. They go through exactly the same static code review and signing process - conducted by two American companies. Any security risk can be addressed at that point in the pipeline. Assuming the concern is about “data security” (vs OS level security), I see literally zero difference between a state actor having access to my data, and a third party advertiser. If it’s insecure, it’s insecure - it doesn’t matter who the potential attacker is. This is a horrible, horrible decision that has nothing to do with security, and everything to do with a horrible president desperately clawing for anything he can to get re-elected.

geogra4 6y ago
Right? That's what so unbelievable about this whole argument! Conceivably this is a tech forum where everyone posting should at least be familiar with that. Tiktok doesn't have any secret hacking rights to your system!
mdorazio 6y ago
> TikTok poses exactly the same risk as any other app on the App/Play stores. No, it does not. See the research here [1]. TikTok is a data collection engine disguised as a social media tool. [1] https://penetrum.com/research https://penetrum.com/research
- nmfisher 6y ago
  That was too ambiguous on my part - to clarify, I meant TikTok has exactly the same potential for risk. TikTok isn’t doing anything that Facebook and Twitter are doing, or may do in future. If there’s a technical security risk that we should be worried about, then I am equally worried about every single other non-Chinese company exploiting it. If this were nation-agnostic, generic data protection laws, no one would bat an eyelid. Couching in terms of hand-wavy national security is just so implausible and blatantly self serving.

geogra4 6y ago

Right? That's what so unbelievable about this whole argument! Conceivably this is a tech forum where everyone posting should at least be familiar with that. Tiktok doesn't have any secret hacking rights to your system!

mdorazio 6y ago

> TikTok poses exactly the same risk as any other app on the App/Play stores. No, it does not. See the research here [1]. TikTok is a data collection engine disguised as a social media tool. [1] https://penetrum.com/research https://penetrum.com/research

nmfisher 6y ago
That was too ambiguous on my part - to clarify, I meant TikTok has exactly the same potential for risk. TikTok isn’t doing anything that Facebook and Twitter are doing, or may do in future. If there’s a technical security risk that we should be worried about, then I am equally worried about every single other non-Chinese company exploiting it. If this were nation-agnostic, generic data protection laws, no one would bat an eyelid. Couching in terms of hand-wavy national security is just so implausible and blatantly self serving.