The sale of popular social media platform TikTok the US operation has been put on hold by the Biden administration. The Biden administration is planning on conducting its own investigation on the security risk of having foreign owned app and software before deciding if the deal between TikTok and Oracle and Walmart will go through or fall apart. But as of right now the deal has been shelved indefinitely.
The Trump administration signed 2 executive orders that looked to ban Chinese owned social media apps which are WeChat and TikTok, this order for ban was based on the fact that the apps were collecting information and was a threat to national security.
But in a turn of events Oracle and Walmart stepped up and made the announcement that they would acquire 20% of a newly formed TikTok Global and issue an IPO within 12 months, this decision would safeguard TikTok from being banned in the US. Oracle came forward to be the cloud provider for the app and own 12.5% whereas Walmart was to take over the e-commerce part of it and own 7.5% of it.
It appears the Biden government does not look at this situation is the simplicity as Oracle and Walmart does. They have reportedly shelved the deal till the Biden Government has looked into this and made their own assessment report on the security risk of this deal.
National Security Council Spokeswoman Emily Horne made the statement that, “We plan to develop a comprehensive approach to securing U.S. data that addresses the full range of threats we face, This includes the risk posed by Chinese apps and other software that operate in the U.S. In the coming months, we expect to review specific cases in light of a comprehensive understanding of the risks we face.”
