TikTok, the social media platform owned by China-based ByteDance, has been deemed a dangerous product in Taiwan, Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang (唐鳳) said.
Tang was responding to a question by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) regarding the government’s stance on the short-form video hosting service that might be banned in the US soon.
This classification was made because TikTok is controlled by foreign adversaries, Tang told a legislative hearing last week, indicating an alignment with the US’ view that the platform is a national security threat.
Photo: Reuters
In Taiwan, any product that could be significantly controlled by foreign adversaries — directly or indirectly — is considered a threat to national information and communication security, and is deemed a dangerous product, she said.
On March 13, the US House of Representatives passed a bill that would give ByteDance about six months to divest its US assets or face a nationwide ban.
The bill is to be forwarded to the US Senate, and if passed there, would be sent to US President Joe Biden to be signed into law.
The Ministry of Digital Affairs has proposed an amendment to the Cyber Security Management Act (資通安全管理法), based on similar concerns stated in the US bill about the indirect influence of foreign adversaries, Tang said.
“Dangerous products” include those provided by a substantive controller of sources of infiltration, as referred to in the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法), the ministry said on Thursday last week regarding the proposed amendment.
TikTok is currently banned for use in Taiwanese government agencies and on their premises.
The Cabinet is to decide whether to extend that ban to schools, non-governmental agencies and public spaces, Tang said.
Taiwan would benefit from more integrated military strategies and deployments if the US and its allies treat the East China Sea, the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea as a “single theater of operations,” a Taiwanese military expert said yesterday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said he made the assessment after two Japanese military experts warned of emerging threats from China based on a drill conducted this month by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command. Japan Institute for National Fundamentals researcher Maki Nakagawa said the drill differed from the
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
A rally held by opposition parties yesterday demonstrates that Taiwan is a democratic country, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday, adding that if opposition parties really want to fight dictatorship, they should fight it on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held a protest with the theme “against green communists and dictatorship,” and was joined by the Taiwan People’s Party. Lai said the opposition parties are against what they called the “green communists,” but do not fight against the “Chinese communists,” adding that if they really want to fight dictatorship, they should go to the right place and face
A 79-year-old woman died today after being struck by a train at a level crossing in Taoyuan, police said. The woman, identified by her surname Wang (王), crossed the tracks even though the barriers were down in Jhongli District’s (中壢) Neili (內壢) area, the Taoyuan Branch of the Railway Police Bureau said. Surveillance footage showed that the railway barriers were lowered when Wang entered the crossing, but why she ventured onto the track remains under investigation, the police said. Police said they received a report of an incident at 6:41am involving local train No. 2133 that was heading from Keelung to Chiayi City. Investigators