Attorney General Merrick Garland cited that the platform is a threat to national security because of its close ties to China.
“TikTok’s collection of reams of sensitive data 2 about 170 million Americans and their contacts makes it a powerful tool for espionage, and TikTok’s role as a key channel of communication makes it a potent weapon for covert influence operations,” Garland said in a brief published Friday.
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The company has refused to separate from its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, and has challenged its ban at several turns. Congress passed a bill earlier this year requiring ByteDance to sell its share in the company or face a nationwide ban.
“So long as TikTok remains subject to the [People’s Republic of China’s] control, the PRC could use those weapons…
