--- title: "The US May Ban TikTok, Trump Administration Says" description: "Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters that the current administration is \"certainly looking at\" banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok." date: "2020-07-07" modified: "2020-07-07" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/us-ban-tiktok-trump-administration" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "china" - "india" - "mike pompeo" - "tiktok" - "us government" --- # The US May Ban TikTok, Trump Administration Says ![Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters that the current administration is "certainly looking at" banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok.]() *\Image: Victor Tangermann\* Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters on Monday that the current administration is "certainly looking at" banning Chinese social media apps including TikTok, [*Reuters* reports](). The smash hit video-sharing app has been criticized for facilitating the collection of personal information by the Chinese government — a claim that its parent company ByteDance denies. "I don’t want to get out in front of the President, but it’s something we’re looking at," Pompeo [told *Fox News*](). Only last week, India, by far the app's largest market, [decided to ban]() TikTok outright, alongside 59 other apps from Chinese developers, noting risks to national security and threats to the "sovereignty and integrity of India," according to an [official statement](). Hong Kong may soon follow that decision after China announced sweeping new national security laws for the embattled region, according to *Reuters*. This week's news comes after the US started placing severe restrictions on Chinese tech giant Huawei, a company that's been spearheading efforts to bring 5G technology to much of the developed world [starting in May of last year](). "The tide is turning against Huawei as citizens around the world are waking up to the danger of the Chinese Communist Party's surveillance state," Pompeo [declared last month]() after the government announced a fresh set of sanctions against Huawei. Not all experts are convinced that those sanctions are productive. According a [UK government report](), US sanctions may force the Huawei to use less-secure technology. "We have worked on this very issue for a long time, whether its the problem of having Huawei technology in your infrastructure — we've gone all over the world and we are making real progress getting that out — we had declared ZTE a danger to American national security," Pompeo told *Fox News* on Monday. And the US may be aiming its sights at Chinese social media apps next as well. "With respect to Chinese apps on people's cell phones, I can assure you the United States will get this one right too," Pompeo added. To experts, the Huawei case could be just the first step. "Huawei is the test case," James Sullivan, head of cyber research at British security think-tank Rusi, [told the *BBC*](). "It's probably the start of a trend in the West where sanctions will seek to squeeze, or even sink, large Chinese tech companies." Pompeo claimed that using TikTok is akin to handing your private information over to the Chinese Communist Party. But the US government has yet to provide any proof that Huawei or TikTok actually facilitate that type of data handover. “We have no higher priority than promoting a safe and secure app experience for our users," read a statement from TikTok sent to *Reuters*. "We have never provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would we do so if asked." **READ MORE:** [Pompeo says U.S. looking at banning Chinese social media apps, including TikTok]() \[*Reuters*\] **More on China:** *[Three Separate Countries Are Launching Mars Missions This Month]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()