TikTok CEO to Testify Before House Panel on App Security and China Ties

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will testify before a House panel on March 23 about the app’s security and privacy practices. Chew will also discuss TikTok’s ties to China through parent company ByteDance.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee has announced that it will hold a hearing with FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb on Monday. This will be Gottlieb's first appearance before the congressional panel.

"TikTok, owned by ByteDance, has knowingly allowed the Chinese Communist Party to access American user data," said Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. "Americans deserve to know how these actions impact their privacy and data security, as well as what actions TikTok is taking to keep our kids safe from online and offline harms."

A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that they "welcome the opportunity to set the record straight about TikTok, ByteDance, and the commitments we are making to address concerns about U.S. national security before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce."

A spokesperson for TikTok has denied claims by US Representative McMorris Rodgers that the app has made US user data available to the Chinese Communist Party. They say that the Party has no direct or indirect control over ByteDance or TikTok, and that under the proposal they have devised with US national security agencies, data sharing of any kind would not be possible.

The spokesperson said they hoped that by sharing details of its plans with the committee, Congress would be able to take a more deliberative approach to the issues at hand.

The hearing announcement comes as the company continues to negotiate with the U.S. government over how to secure its app in the country. TikTok has been engaging with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., which can determine if certain risk mitigation measures are adequate to dampen national security concerns.

Although negotiations have reportedly been delayed, officials are still concerned about the implications of the app’s ownership by Chinese parent company ByteDance. This is because Chinese-based companies can be compelled to hand over data to the government on request. In the past, TikTok has assured U.S. officials and lawmakers that it does not store U.S. user data in China to mitigate that risk, but that has done little to assuage fears.

TikTok has come under fire from both sides of Congress and the Trump and Biden administrations over concerns about its national security and privacy implications for consumers.

In a statement at the time, a TikTok spokesperson called the passage of the bill “a political gesture that will do nothing to advance national security interests,” adding that the agreement CFIUS was reviewing would “meaningfully address any security concerns that have been raised at both the federal and state level.”