Conservative tech experts ask Jim Jordan to probe TikTok-Google collaboration

Conservative tech policy experts are urging Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, to hold a hearing on a potential partnership between TikTok and Google, calling it "deeply concerning" both for U. S. markets and American citizens’ privacy.

"As you may be aware, TikTok, the social platform owned by Chinese company ByteDance, is currently testing a search partnership with Google, a noteworthy development in the way people search online," a letter sent to Jordan this week explained.

"Within the TikTok app, some searches now display an option to search the same request on Google. This redirection leads users to an in-app browser featuring Google’s search results for the query.

"This partnership between Google and TikTok is deeply concerning as it threatens core principles of the free market and the individual freedom and privacy of everyday Americans."

TikTok and parent company ByteDance have been a source of alarm for national security hawks who have warned the Chinese government could use the massively popular social media platform to influence and monitor Americans. The search feature was first reported by Insider in late September.

The letter also pointed to Google’s own privacy issues, such as when the company had to pay $170 million for allowing YouTube to illegally collect data from minors without their parents’ consent in 2019.... (Read more)

Latest News