New York City’s public Wi-Fi network closes on controversial deal with Chinese-owned TikTok to bring the service to “every street corner” amid a Post investigation and an intensified congressional pursuit of the app concluded.
Partnership plan with technology company Intersection and link NYC TikTok’s “Out of Phone” service now extends its wildly popular mobile video content to public displays everywhere from billboards to bars, and even to the screens of cell phone poles and Wi-Fi kiosks across the city. Designed.
However, Representatives Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Ritchie Torres (D-Bronx) learned of the plan and called it a national security threat given the company’s ties to China. , immediately demanded that Mayor Eric Adams terminate the agreement.
Intersection told the Post on Sunday that its contract with TikTok was frozen following inquiries from the outlet.
“Although this relationship did not involve the collection or sharing of any data, Intersection has already suspended its TikTok content partnership and is in the process of terminating it due to recent developments at the federal level. ,” said an Intersection representative.
This is a big departure from what Intersection said when it announced the TikTok partnership in February. Company representative’s shout “Our collaboration with TikTok will lead to every corner of New York City,” the statement said.
The free public LinkNYC Wi-Fi program is currently offered under a city franchise agreement with a consortium called CityBridge, which includes Intersection and Boldyn Networks.
After Intersection and TikTok signed the deal, Gottheimer and Torres learned of it and filed a complaint against the city.
“We are writing to urge you to end the partnership between TikTok, LinkNYC, and Intersection,” Paul told the mayor in a draft letter obtained by the Post.
“This partnership poses a serious threat to national security by allowing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to collect data on Americans from the nation’s largest city,” they said.
Mr. Gottheimer and Mr. Torres agreed that the House of Representatives last month gave ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese owner, about six months to sell the short video app’s U.S. assets or face a ban.352 He pointed out that it passed with a vote of 65 votes. The Senate is considering a similar bill, but the move faces opposition from TikTok and many of its users.
While New York City is the world’s financial capital and home to a “treasure trove of sensitive data and information” and 9 million residents, the Chinese Communist Party “uses cyber warfare and surveillance tactics to compromise U.S. institutions.” We are ready,” the congressman told the mayor. .
“This privacy disaster cannot continue any longer. TikTok and the Chinese Communist Party cannot have new ways to access Americans’ data,” Gottheimer and Torres said. “While Congress has taken steps to mitigate these national security threats, the New York City partnership remains a national security threat and should be terminated immediately.”
The Federal Trade Commission fined TikTok in 2019 for knowingly collecting names, email addresses, photos and location information of children under 13 without parental consent, lawmakers said.
In 2022, the social media app also agreed to settle a class action lawsuit alleging it collected personal data in the United States without users’ consent, allowing China-based employees to collect data on Americans, including public videos and comments. Lawmakers said they confirmed remote access was possible. he said to the mayor.
“With TikTok, China has the ability to control what a generation of children watches and consumes every day,” the congressman said.
“We urge New York City to immediately reevaluate its contract with LinkNYC.
Partnership with TikTok. ”
The city’s Office of Technology and Innovation, a side of the Adams administration, recused itself from the controversy Sunday in response to an interview with the Post, insisting it was not directly involved in the deal.
“New York City recognizes the public health risks and cybersecurity threats posed by TikTok and has taken significant legal and policy actions to address both,” an OTI spokesperson said in a statement. Ta.
In August, Adams’ Cyber Command banned TikTok from all government devices and ordered all city employees to remove the app from their work phones within 30 days, fearing Chinese espionage.
“The current administration has no advertising partnership with TikTok,” an OTI representative said. “As a franchisee of the LinkNYC program, CityBridge is restricted from collecting personally identifiable information or sharing that data with third parties. It is not endorsed by.”
