Myths vs Facts
Myth: TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance Ltd., is Chinese owned. Fact: TikTok’s parent company ByteDance Ltd. was founded by Chinese entrepreneurs, but today, roughly sixty percent of the company is beneficially owned…
Myth vs Facts
Myth vs Facts
ByteDance used TikTok data to surveil journalists and their precise locations.
A small group of ByteDance employees attempted to misuse their access to TikTok user data in an effort to identify employees who leaked confidential company information to journalists. The aim…
TikTok takes a lax approach to minor safety & privacy in order to addict teens to its platform.
Youth safety is a top priority for TikTok and we have taken numerous steps to help ensure that teens under 18 have a safe and enjoyable experience on the app,…
Douyin offers educational content, limits screen time, and creates a positive experience for teens, while TikTok does not.
Douyin and TikTok are separate apps that are run by separate teams and serve separate markets. Some reports have compared the Douyin experience for users under age 14 to the…
TikTok collects a significant amount of sensitive data on its users.
TikTok’s privacy policy fully describes the data the company collects. There have been many inaccurate claims about our policies and practices that have gone unaddressed by the media. To be…
TikTok gathers as much data as possible, and the company takes a lax approach to the security of that data.
We have strict data access controls and protections, and these will be enhanced even further by Project Clover, including unprecedented third-party oversight of our data security protocols. TikTok has been…
TikTok stores European user data in China, where multiple Chinese nationals, including possible members of the CCP, have access to it.
TikTok’s user data is stored securely in the US, Singapore and Malaysia, not China. Under Project Clover, our three new European data centres will become the default storage location for…
Under its 2017 National Intelligence law, the Chinese government can compel ByteDance to share European TikTok user data.
TikTok Information Technologies UK Ltd. and TikTok Technology Limited, which offer the TikTok app in the UK and EEA, are incorporated in the UK and Ireland respectively and are subject…
ByteDance censors TikTok content on behalf of the CCP or Chinese government.
This is not true. There are no TikTok content moderators in China. Content moderation on TikTok is overseen by our U.S. and Ireland-led Trust and Safety team. All content is…
TikTok manipulates content in a way that benefits the Chinese government
TikTok is an entertainment app. The content on TikTok is generated by our community. TikTok does not permit any government to influence or change its recommendation model.
Decisions about TikTok are made in Beijing.
This is not true. TikTok’s CEO Shou Chew is a third-generation Singaporean who is based in Singapore; Mr. Chew oversees all key day-to-day and strategic decision making when it comes…
The Chinese government has a “golden share” interest in ByteDance Ltd.
The Chinese government has no golden share or ownership in TikTok’s parent company, Bytedance Ltd. As is required under Chinese law, in order to operate certain news and information products…
There is a member of the Chinese government on ByteDance’s board of directors.
This is not accurate. ByteDance’s board of directors is comprised of five individuals, none of whom is a part of any government or state entity. 3 of the 5 are…
TikTok and ByteDance are headquartered in China.
TikTok, which is not available in mainland China, has established Los Angeles and Singapore as headquarters locations to meet its business needs. That is in keeping with ByteDance’s approach to…
TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance Ltd., is Chinese owned.
TikTok’s parent company ByteDance Ltd. was founded by Chinese entrepreneurs, but today, roughly sixty percent of the company is beneficially owned by global institutional investors such as Carlyle Group, General…