By: Alina Dang

To the Editor:

President Donald Trump issued two executive orders on Thursday, August 6th, 2020 banning not one but two Chinese social media apps in the United States. Trump is planning to ban both WeChat and Tik Tok due to national security concerns. As Trump says, unless an American company buys them, both apps would have to stop operating.

Although it is not clear whether the government knows that Tik Tok and WeChat’s data or company is dangerous, there is not released proof that either of the app’s companies are providing the Chinese government with any of their American users’ data. Tik Tok and WeChat are both widely used in the United States and without it, and without a doubt, there will be a lot of inconvenience for residents.

Microsoft or any other American company must buy the apps before September 15, 2020, otherwise, the servers will stop working. I believe instead of banning apps like Tik Tok and WeChat without evidence, the government should set a clear standard for how American user’s data should be protected.

Alina Dang

Link to Article:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/07/opinion/tiktok-wechat-china-trump-executive-order.html