However putting this data in the hands of FAANG is no problem at all, and totally can't end up in any nefarious hands.
If you want to argue for more laws, go ahead. But don't do this whataboutism where you pretend like you care about these issues, and argue against ways of stopping, at least some of the bad things happening.
The Chinese government isn't going to use nefariously collected data about you in order to get a search warrant or something. The American one is.
They could intentionally influence the public opinion about anything, e.g., elections.
A healthy middle-class in America, with immediate needs like healthcare and housing met, is China's best interests as that means Americans have more money to spend on consumer goods.
The Koch Brothers want to dismantle all the organs of state they don't approve of.
China never did that to me.
We don't have "fair" elections after the FCC scrapped the Fairness Doctrine in the 80s under Regan.
We don't have "fair" elections for the president since we don't directly elect the president.
The scenario where china somehow designs a dastardly TikTok video that convinces---I'm sorry "manipulates"---young people to vote en mass in a way that somehow advances the national interests of China and against their own material concerns is remote. But, I'm not sure how that's worse than any other garden variety Super PAC, or billionaire debutante like Mike Bloomberg or Howard Schultz.
> The scenario where china ... "manipulates" ... young people to vote en mass in a way that somehow advances the national interests of China is remote
Didn't it already happen with Russia affecting the elections via Facebook?
But if you wanna beat the drum of Jingoism, here is a counter argument: the Chinese Government has little interest in the activities of most domestic US citizens. Its the US Federal Government that cares if American citizens are feeling too rebellious.
Including influencing public perception of domestic and international events? You may as well say the Chinese government doesn't care about world politics.
Also it's not "Jingoist" to assume that a foreign government (with whom we've had friction) has less of our interests in mind than our own government.
Practically, I'll be more concerned about my government having the data vs a third world. I rarely get involved in Chinese politics/threads and have little interaction with them except everything is manufactured there. I may visit China/Taiwan/Hong Kong as a tourist sometime in future.
For my own country I am actively interested in and sometime involved in political discussions/forums. I have stronger opinion in favour/against current government and will have lot more influence on my local.
So the govt./org. trying to suppress/persecute me will be with high probability my own vs China or Russia.
FAANG has a data sharing mandate with the US government. My own government spying on me is more dangerous than some foreign government spying on me, because it is unlikely I wake up looking into the barrel of a Chinese exfiltration team at three in the night. Getting woken at gunpoint by the local village idiot/Sheriff because they don't like my surfing pattern is a lot more likely.
killing tiktok because it's too successful will undermine US credibility as a fair entity in any kind of business negociation, with any country.
I wouldn't be surprised if this case would be used later by the EU in regulating FAANGs even more and inventing taxes just for them ( which, as a european i find completely outrageous, for the same reasons).