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U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

reuters.com

11–20 of 171 posts

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#11
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the issue has nothing to do with it being Chinese, but with the extent at which it swallows up data on Americans. Why even bother sending spies to another country and making plans for infiltration when you can get them to download a full spying suite under the guise of social media? The problem is this opens a whole new can of worms regarding Facebook and other American social media. Other countries are equal…

>I think the issue has nothing to do with it being Chinese, but with the extent at which it swallows up data on Americans But it's A-ok when NSA powered/hijacked/collaborated U.S. social media companies do the same to the rest of the world? I'm pretty sure PRISM didn't just get dismantled after Snowden. >Why even bother sending spies to another country and making plans for infiltration when you can get them to downlo…

In the very next paragraph I mentioned that other countries have the right to respond to America the same way.

Espionage isn't just uploading blueprints. That's 1950s comic book stuff. It's copying users' clipboards, recording conversations, and tracking locations and gathering data from those around you.

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#12
post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the issue has nothing to do with it being Chinese, but with the extent at which it swallows up data on Americans. Why even bother sending spies to another country and making plans for infiltration when you can get them to download a full spying suite under the guise of social media? The problem is this opens a whole new can of worms regarding Facebook and other American social media. Other countries are equal…

>I think the issue has nothing to do with it being Chinese, but with the extent at which it swallows up data on Americans But it's A-ok when NSA powered/hijacked/collaborated U.S. social media companies do the same to the rest of the world? I'm pretty sure PRISM didn't just get dismantled after Snowden. >Why even bother sending spies to another country and making plans for infiltration when you can get them to downlo…

This is just classic whataboutism. You should be careful of all of these companies as well. But you can't really equate the rule of law in both the countries in good faith.

I really doubt criticism of Covid-19 handling lands you in jail in US. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2020/07/06/worl...

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#13
post #10

What would it mean to "ban" an app? Would they force Apple and Google not to distribute it? Would they set up a national firewall?

Just ask the app stores to ban them. The US couldn’t do anything more sophisticated right now, and that would solve most of their concerns.

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#14
post #10

What would it mean to "ban" an app? Would they force Apple and Google not to distribute it? Would they set up a national firewall?

Just ask the app stores to ban them. The US couldn’t do anything more sophisticated right now, and that would solve most of their concerns.

Has there been any precedence of US banning an app/website without some clear violation of law?

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#15
post #4

So this is how it's going to happen - with every country banning each other's social media apps, we will enter into a future of digital borders, limited speech, and broken international relations. All in the name of making sure people don't dare think some wrongthink.

TikTok can already limit your speech. If you "wrong think" on their you would be booted.

Of course. But Facebook limits our speech just as much, no?

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#16
post #10

What would it mean to "ban" an app? Would they force Apple and Google not to distribute it? Would they set up a national firewall?

Just ask the app stores to ban them. The US couldn’t do anything more sophisticated right now, and that would solve most of their concerns.

Why would the app stores agree to do that? Apple in particular is pretty well-known for refusing invasive government requests.

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#17
post #7

So this is how it's going to happen - with every country banning each other's social media apps, we will enter into a future of digital borders, limited speech, and broken international relations. All in the name of making sure people don't dare think some wrongthink.

I think the issue has nothing to do with it being Chinese, but with the extent at which it swallows up data on Americans. Why even bother sending spies to another country and making plans for infiltration when you can get them to download a full spying suite under the guise of social media? The problem is this opens a whole new can of worms regarding Facebook and other American social media. Other countries are equal…

> Other countries are equally justified in banning them for the same reason.

Sure, but what happens when all of our social connections to people in other countries are basically cut, or minimized to the point where they're not really fully fledged friendships anymore, somehow more distant than ever?

I think what happens, ultimately, is that war becomes more possible, because otherizing and dehumanizing people becomes much easier.

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just ask the app stores to ban them. The US couldn’t do anything more sophisticated right now, and that would solve most of their concerns.

Why would the app stores agree to do that? Apple in particular is pretty well-known for refusing invasive government requests.

Because it would be the law

Re: U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok

#20

So this is how it's going to happen - with every country banning each other's social media apps, we will enter into a future of digital borders, limited speech, and broken international relations. All in the name of making sure people don't dare think some wrongthink.

On that note, this will be tough for people with relatives in China, since they might lose their only way to chat for free.

You also lose a channel for pushing your own propaganda to other countries.

Here’s an idea: what if you forced any app that goes across borders to be open source and implement decentralized encryption of all data? This is a joke of course....

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