Social media app Tik Tok has announced the launch of a content moderation centre amid rising concerns over the app’s security apparatus. The “Transparency Centre” will be opened at TikTok’s Los Angeles office where external experts will oversee its operations, the company said in its blog. The centre would also provide access to the app’s source code, the closely guarded internal instructions of the software, and provide more details on privacy and security.
The move comes in the aftermath of numerous lawsuits across the US accusing the Chinese company of data harvesting as it faces scrutiny from US lawmakers who have accused it of sharing user data with the Chinese government.
The app has already been banned by several US agencies dealing with national security and other sensitive departments, ordering their employees to refrain from using the app. Byte Dance, the owner of the app, has refuted the claims maintaining that the data from users in the US is stored in US servers and as such the Chinese government had no jurisdiction over it. It is pertinent to mention that according to a Chinese law passed in 2017, developers have to comply with the government agencies and provide data wherever necessary.
Tik Tok has been on a cleaning spree for a while now, introducing a number of measures to boost its image. It had recently launched a “Family safety mode” that allows for screen time management as well as direct messages controlling tools amid weakening public trust. The company also published a transparency report back in December on the volume and nature of government requests for the user data information.
