Two senators want the Department of Justice to launch a probe into the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok and video technology services app Zoom.
Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri and Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut penned a letter to Assistant Attorney General John Demers on Thursday urging an investigation in alleged violations of civil liberties.
“Based on numerous reports, we are extremely concerned that Zoom and TikTok have disclosed private information about Americans to the [People’s Republic of China] and engaged in censorship on behalf of the Chinese government,” the two wrote in their letter.
The senators accused both companies of attempting to hide their interactions with the Chinese Communist Party and posed questions about the handling of user data.
“We believe that it is imperative that the Department of Justice investigate and determine whether Zoom and TikTok’s business relationships, data handling practices, and operational connections to China pose a risk to Americans,” they said.
TikTok is among the most downloaded social media apps in the world, and Zoom has seen an unprecedented rise in valuation since the pandemic hit as companies scramble to shift communications to the digital space.
