TikTok is finally banned on Australian Government and Agency smartphones

TikTok is finally banned on Australian Government and Agency smartphones. About bloody time as this App is dangerous in so many ways. Even the ABC may remove it.

Of course, that should mean Australian consumers follow suit. Still, they are probably not as well educated as CyberShack readers and are happy to keep using TikTok is dangerous – a drug, subversive and spyware.

Here is what TikTok knows about you and, by inference, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

• Name
• Address
• Birthday
• Email address (especially those using .gov, .edu, .asn or companies of interest).
• Biometric data – face ID, skin, hair and eye colour, height, weight, age, and sentiment (it parses all images and uses recognition and sentiment tools).
• Biometric data – voice print and audio transcriptions- can create an account using that.
• Object and environment recognition and content
• Username and password (and as so many people re-use passwords, it is an open invitation to hackers)
• Credit card details (where appropriate)
• Phone number/type/IMEI
• Contacts (Find Friends)
• Private messages using the platform
• Users you interact with
• Network information, IP address (mobile or Wi-Fi)
• Location at any time
• Website visits via hidden, transparent tracker pixels
• What websites you visit, what pages you view, what forms you fill it and what you type
• What you are looking at – user content, and what you comment on
• What TikTok categories you most use
• Facebook and Google profiles if you sign in via those. Worse, its data collection extends beyond users via other profiles, cookie tracking, etc.

Its 7000+ word Privacy Policy is so full of holes that Swiss Cheese looks up to it.😂

It shares the data with third parties and business partners like content moderation services, measurement providers, advertisers, and analytics providers. It shares with law enforcement agencies or regulators (a.k.a. CCP) and with third parties with a court order.

While it says data it stores your data as long as necessary to provide you with the service, some users have information dating back five years.

TikTok colludes with Influencers knowing it has no legal liability for content on the site or its accuracy.

But TikTok says it is safe

Liable precludes me from stating it is lying, but I don’t trust a word that its Australian and US CEOs and officers say. They drink the company Kool-Aid.

They would have you believe that targeted advertising is the worst thing the data is used for. Those rivers of gold end up in the shareholder’s CCP pockets.

Why not ban Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp (Meta) and other social sites?

If governments could ban them, these would be the next targets. But as these are mainly US-based, come under US law, and share Western social mores and ethics, most governments have opted to regulate via strengthening privacy laws.

TikTok is 100% Chinese owned by ByteDance with known links to the CCP.

Why are major world governments acting, albeit too late?

There is irrefutable evidence that your data:

• Can be accessed by the CCP and the Chinese government on demand. They can identify people that may be sympathetic or opposed to their cause.
• Aids in profiling – gender, sexual preferences, job title/importance, political leanings, social mores, and so much more.
• Presents you with content that you like and could contain subversive messaging, radicalisation, sexual content (no censorship), and child abuse material.
• Provides content that becomes addictive.
• Provides deliberately misleading information like fake news and deep fake videos that can sway opinion.
• Is a vehicle for online predators, cyberbullying, and eating disorders, and affects mental health.
• Can be used to start trends, fads, rally to causes, incite violence, and change opinions.
• Can track persons of interest like Hong Kong protesters, journalists, the military, etc.
• May be able to take control of Android and iOS devices

Governments cannot ban individual use but could use regulation to stop the abuse. Government bans are now in

• Australia
• Afghanistan
• Armenia
• Azerbaijan
• Bangladesh
• India
• Pakistan
• Syria
• Indonesia
• Japan
• Canada
• All European Union countries
• UK
• US
• New Zealand

US lawmakers in the House of Representatives are drafting a bill to outright ban the app. It could give President Biden’s White House the legal means to outlaw the platform across the country over national security concerns.

Summary

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman criticised the app, calling it ‘spyware’ and stating,

I look at that app as so fundamentally parasitic that it’s always listening, the fingerprinting technology they use is truly terrifying, and I could not bring myself to install an app like that on my phone.

Australian Senator James Patterson said

TikTok is not what it appears to be on the surface. It is not just an app for sharing funny videos or meme. That’s the sheep’s clothing. At its core, TikTok functions as a sophisticated surveillance tool that harvests extensive amounts of personal and sensitive data.

FBI director Christopher Wray said the Chinese-owned video app ‘screams’ of security concerns.

He told a Senate Intelligence Committee on worldwide threats to US security that China’s government could use the social media platform to control software on millions of devices and drive narratives to divide Americans over Taiwan or other issues.

#Delete TikTok Today

Back in 2018, the #DeleteFacebook movement took hold as users protested some of the company’s ulterior motives and suspicious practices.

But while Facebook is no angel and unquestionably deserves to be under the spotlight for its decisions, TikTok is a lot worse.

The bottom line is quite simple. You should not have an account, you should not have the app on your phone, and you should not encourage other users to sign up.

CyberShack’s view – TikTok is finally banned in AU Government devices. Shouldn’t you too?

Despite overwhelming evidence, over 8 million Aussies use it, spending about 30 hours a month on it.

There are far safer Apps like YouTube Shorts, Snapchat Spotlight, Instagram Reels and IGTV (Meta) that all work under US legislation. Likee, Triller, Lomotif and many more are interesting but look for non-China-based Apps. TikTok creators can download their videos and move them to other platforms.

TikTok is finally banned, TikTok is finally banned