The US government has no say in what users download unless they’re using government devices. Starting August 15, US House of Representatives staff will be banned from using all ByteDance apps on government devices.
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TikTok has already been banned, but the ban also includes several other apps that you or someone around you may be using.
- Cap Cut: Video Editing Tools and Filters
- High Pick: Photo editing tools and filters
- Lark: Collaboration apps designed for work
- Lemon 8: Social media apps focused on fashion, beauty, travel, food and other lifestyle categories
It all comes down to ByteDance’s ties to Communist China: The company is based in Beijing and is required by Chinese law to give the government access to the data it collects.
The TikTok app will appear on your phone screen. (Yui Mok/PA Images via Getty Images)
Let’s take a closer look at what they collect
If you think ByteDance’s paranoia is overblown, Laundry list How much data do you lose every time you scroll through TikTok?
- Your name, age, username, email address, password, phone number, location.
- Your IP address, your mobile operator, your time zone, the model of your device, and the OS you’re using.
- Biometric identifiers such as face ID and audio fingerprint.
- The content of your messages and the exact times you sent, received or read them.
- If you purchase items from the TikTop Shop, your purchase information, such as your credit card number, billing address, and shipping address.
- Your activity on other websites and apps (or It also displays information about the products you’ve purchased, including your in-store purchase history.
- File name and type.
- Keystroke patterns and rhythm.
- Objects and scenery featured in the video, such as tourist attractions, shops, and other landmarks.
- What web pages do you visit most frequently and how do you interact with them?
- Text, images and videos on the clipboard.
- Video, image and audio information.
TikTok embeds data in images and ads, tracking when you visit the page along with descriptions. The amount of data TikTok collects is so huge that it makes it extremely dangerous to clone your entire phone.
TechLife is a smarter upgrade than TikTok
where TikTok’s data storage has also raised a major red flag for Congress: Any information collected in the US goes directly to servers in China, but the company says it has changed its systems to store US data within the US.
How is Tem?
One of my warnings about a wildly popular shopping app made headlines last year, and while the craze is starting to die down, Temu was the most downloaded app of its kind in the U.S. in 2023.
Temu’s tagline, “Shop like a millionaire,” refers to low prices on everything from clothing to household goods to electronics. The company is based in the U.S. but is owned by China-based PDD Holdings, which also owns Pinduoduo, which was removed from the Google Play Store. Contains malware.
Temu from the App Store will appear on your phone screen. (Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
While you shop, Temu can:
- Monitor other apps’ activity
- Track notifications
- Read private messages
- Change the settings
Depending on what you enable, you’ll have full access to all your contacts, calendars, and photo albums, as well as your social media accounts, chats, and texts.
Run this now
Of course, it’s up to you which apps you want to keep on your phone. You might think that limiting permissions is enough. But you might want to go a step further.
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Remove the app from your Android phone.
- Tap and hold the app App information > Uninstall.
- Go to setting > Apps and notifications View the list of apps and remove them in the same way.
- Or, open the Google Play Store app menu > My Apps and GamesTap Apps Uninstall.
- Note: Samsung and OnePlus phones have Uninstall App shortcut menu options.
Delete apps from your iPhone
- Press and hold the app Delete the app > Delete the app > erase.
- Or use the App Library to get a list of apps organized by category. Swipe up on the last page of the Home screen to access it. Touch and hold an app to Delete the app > erase.
A man holds an iPhone in his hand. (Silas Stein/Photo Alliance via Getty Images)
But Kim, you have to scroll through TikTok…
… or any other app from the list above. At the very least, there’s a relatively secure way to do it where all of your actual phone data isn’t being sent anywhere.
- Install TikTok on your old device It will no longer be associated with your email, bank details, or any other information.
If possible, avoid connecting to your home Wi-Fi network and buy a cheap data plan, if not, use a guest network, and ask yourself if those video and photo editing tools and cheap gadgets are really worth the hassle.
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