TikTok is one of the most popular social media apps that has taken the favor of young users by storm. Meanwhile, the controversy surrounding the app is back like a boomerang. On Wednesday, the European Parliament announced that it had banned its employees from using the Chinese app. The reason is for security reasons. Earlier, a similar decision was taken by the European Commission and the Council of the European Union.
Similar recommendations were made by the White House. On Tuesday, the US administration ordered all government agencies to remove the app from federal devices. As the Reuters agency explains, the argument was “data security”.
TikTok and cybersecurity. Experts have doubts. “TikTok is spyware”
The TikTok application in the context of cybersecurity became loud in 2020. The head of the Reddit website (it belongs to the category of social news, like Digg, which Wykop.pl used to follow) described the work of the Chinese with the strong word “parasite”. Steve Huffman claimed that the app listens to its users and uses various techniques to create something like a digital fingerprint, which will significantly facilitate the tracking of users on the web – also outside the application. ‘
– I keep telling people: do not install this spyware on your smartphones
he said.
– I find this app completely parasitic that is always listening. The fingerprinting technology it uses is truly terrifying. I couldn’t bring myself to install an app like this on my phone.”
A spokesman for TikTok immediately responded to these allegations, claiming that they are completely unfounded.
FBI Director: Data goes to China
FBI Director Christopher Wray – the same who in recent days spoke about the possibility of a coronavirus leak from the laboratory – also strongly criticizes TikTok. He stated that the app collects user data that goes to the Chinese communist regime.
Opponents of TikTok claim that Chinese authorities use this type of application to spy on their citizens. This is the opinion of Brendan Carr, an American lawyer.
– TikTok is not an ordinary app. It’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It collects sensitive data packets, to which Beijing has access, according to the latest reports.
he said.
Critics also point out that in China, applications are used to collect data about citizens, because the country has a points system. Every behavior is assessed. The Social Credit System obtains information about the citizen’s behavior from all possible sources. Even WeChat, the most popular Chinese messenger, is connected to it. So the Chinese must be careful not only not to get a speeding ticket. He has to be very careful what he says. In a private conversation with a friend.
TikTok spying on users? Old doubts come back
Equally strong words were used by a security researcher who took TikTok to the workshop in 2020. As reported by Niebezpiecznik.pl, the popular application allegedly works “like malware that targets children”.
Don’t use it and don’t let your family use it
– claimed the expert.
And as proof of his words, he described the set of data that TikTok analyzes. Checks what hardware the user is running on (processor, other components, screen size, free disk space), network information (such as IP address and even more dangerous MAC address, which physically identifies the network card built into our device), address MAC of the router and the name of the Wi-Fi network. TikTok was also supposed to collect information about installed applications (including those already removed) and location information. And that’s with sampling every 30 seconds.
Niebezpiecznik’s experts emphasized that suspicions also concerned the possibility of remotely issuing commands to the application – it would allegedly collect other, additional data.
Why is collecting too much data on a massive scale dangerous?
The accusation of creating a digital fingerprint is made not only against TikTok, but also other applications or games. According to experts, collecting a large set of data may allow the identification of a specific user. The combination of information about our processor, IP address, amount of disk space and connected devices (cameras, microphones) creates a unique identifier.
This threat does not only affect your smartphone, but all devices. Data can be collected using a traditional browser or application. It is for fear of taking over too much data that we should not visit suspicious sites. Where there is pirated software, pornography, there are also aggressive scripts that steal as much information about us as possible, profile us, pass the collected data on.
Activists from the Anonymous group, among which there are also hackers, also made very serious allegations against TikTok.
It’s actually malware that is part of a massive user spying operation run by the Chinese government.
– stated representatives of the organization.
More doubts. “TikTok has a built-in keylogger”
In the summer of 2022, Felix Krause, a cybersecurity specialist, stated that the TikTok app has a built-in browser that can monitor everything the user types on the keyboard. This type of code has a name – it’s a keylogger, a malicious application that intercepts everything that we type on the keyboard – including a credit card number or e-mail password.
Technically, it’s the equivalent of a keylogger
– wrote the expert.
And TikTok responded to these allegations. He found that many other applications use similar code. He also assured that it is not used to intercept data, but to analyze the behavior of users using the application.
Is TikTok listening? He can definitely hear you
TikTok, like many other apps, accesses our microphone as long as we agree to it. What applications can hear us can be checked in the preferences on the smartphone, calling each of the installed programs in turn and manually checking what we allowed it to do.
There have been more disturbing reports about TikTok in the past. The allegations include the use of special codes to display advertisements, sharing information with other entities, and creating very detailed user profiles.
Source: Gazeta
Mabel is a talented author and journalist with a passion for all things technology. As an experienced writer for the 247 News Agency, she has established a reputation for her in-depth reporting and expert analysis on the latest developments in the tech industry.
