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Report: Trump will order ByteDance to sell US TikTok business, Microsoft rumored to be in the mix

News has been building about the US looking into banning TikTok and today that’s come to a head. Reported by Bloomberg, President Trump is ready to force Chinese parent company ByteDance to sell off its US TikTok operations.

Anonymous sources shared with Bloomberg that Trump is planning announce the decision soon, in fact, as early as today.

As we previously covered, the White House has been investigating banning the app or similar action over a number of concerns but a major one is TikTok becoming a place full of misleading speech (via CNN).

TikTok could become a major platform for misleading speech, policymakers and security experts fear. Reports have already found Pizzagate conspiracy theorists on the platform and users spreading false claims about the coronavirus. And if TikTok were to suffer a data breach, said Vanunu, it might be that much easier to target users with bogus information that could undercut American democracy. So TikTok’s handling of content and user data could plausibly weaken US power and influence, experts say, but more abstractly than directly spying on government officials or monitoring troop movements.

The White House nor TikTok responded to Bloomberg‘s request for comment.

Meanwhile, claims from anonymous sources shared with Fox Business Network’s Charles Gasparino say that Microsoft is interested in acquiring the US TikTok business.

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Avatar for Michael Potuck Michael Potuck

Michael is an editor for 9to5Mac. Since joining in 2016 he has written more than 3,000 articles including breaking news, reviews, and detailed comparisons and tutorials.