Canada has ordered the dissolution of Tik TikTok’s business operation in the country after a national security review of the Chinese company behind it. This it says won’t affect Canadians’ access to the viral video app that security agencies say can be used by China to spy on users.
In a statement on Wednesday, Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said it is meant to address risks related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc.
“The government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content. The decision to use a social media application or platform is a personal choice,” Champagne said.
Champagne said it is important for Canadians to adopt good cybersecurity practices, including protecting their personal information.
He said the dissolution order was made in accordance with the Investment Canada Act, which allows for the review of foreign investments that may harm Canada’s national security. He said the decision was based on information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners.
A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of local jobs.
“We will challenge this order in court,” the spokesperson said. “The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive.”
TikTok is wildly popular with young people, but its Chinese ownership has raised fears that Beijing could use it to collect data on Western users or push pro-China narratives and misinformation. TikTok is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company that moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2020.
TikTok faces intensifying scrutiny from Europe and America over security and data privacy. It comes as China and the West are locked in a wider tug of war over technology ranging from spy balloons to computer chips.
Canada previously banned TikTok from all government-issued mobile devices. TikTok has two offices in Canada, one in Toronto and one in Vancouver.
Michael Geist, Canada research chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, said in a blog post that “banning the company rather than the app may actually make matters worse since the risks associated with the app will remain but the ability to hold the company accountable will be weakened.”
Canada’s decision comes a day after Donald Trump’s election in the United States. In June, Trump joined TikTok, a platform he had previously sought to ban during his presidency. The app now has approximately 170 million users in the U.S.
Trump attempted to ban TikTok with an executive order, claiming that mobile apps developed and owned by Chinese companies posed a national security threat to the United States. However, the courts blocked the move after TikTok filed a lawsuit.
Both the U.S. FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that ByteDance could share user data such as browsing history, location and biometric identifiers with China’s government. TikTok said it has never done that and would not, if asked.
Earlier this year, Trump stated that he believed TikTok still posed a national security risk, but he was opposed to banning the app.
In April, U.S. President Joe Biden signed legislation requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok to a U.S. company within a year or face a nationwide ban. However, it remains uncertain whether the law will withstand a legal challenge from TikTok or if ByteDance will agree to the sale.
