TikTok's Project Texas Struggles to Safeguard American User Data

Despite a $1.5 billion investment, internal documents and employee accounts suggest occasional unauthorized data sharing with Chinese parent company ByteDance.

• TikTok's $1.5 billion initiative, Project Texas, aimed at safeguarding American user data, is reportedly struggling due to frequent algorithm updates by ByteDance, TikTok's parent company in China.
• Internal documents and employee accounts suggest that data is occasionally shared with ByteDance without following formal procedures, potentially including sensitive information such as email addresses, birthdates, and IP addresses.
• Project Texas staff reportedly face challenges in keeping up with the algorithm updates and ensuring data security, with some expressing concerns about the security of their ByteDance-owned devices.
• Despite these concerns, TikTok maintains that it does not share American user data with the Chinese government and that U.S. data remains in the U.S. except in rare cases.
• TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew is set to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on child safety online, amidst ongoing concerns about the platform's ability to protect its users.

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