TikTok Banned on Government Devices Under Spending Bill Passed by Congress (cnbc.com) 52
Under the bipartisan spending bill that passed both chambers of Congress as of Friday, TikTok will be banned from government devices, underscoring the growing concern about the popular video-sharing app owned by China's ByteDance. From a report: The bill, which still has to be signed into law by President Joe Biden, also calls on e-commerce platforms to do more vetting to help deter counterfeit goods from being sold online, and forces companies pursuing large mergers to pay more to file with federal antitrust agencies.
Congress failed to pass many of the most aggressive bills targeting tech, including antitrust legislation that would require app stores developed by Apple and Google to give developers more payment options, and a measure mandating new guardrails to protect kids online. And though Congress made more headway this year than in the past toward a compromise bill on national privacy standards, there remains only a patchwork of state laws determining how consumer data is protected. Center-left tech industry group Chamber of Progress cheered the exclusion of several antitrust bills that would have targeted its backers, which include Apple, Amazon, Google and Meta.
Congress failed to pass many of the most aggressive bills targeting tech, including antitrust legislation that would require app stores developed by Apple and Google to give developers more payment options, and a measure mandating new guardrails to protect kids online. And though Congress made more headway this year than in the past toward a compromise bill on national privacy standards, there remains only a patchwork of state laws determining how consumer data is protected. Center-left tech industry group Chamber of Progress cheered the exclusion of several antitrust bills that would have targeted its backers, which include Apple, Amazon, Google and Meta.
Chinese Spyware and Malware (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:1, Flamebait)
Far worse malware isn't banned, but I suppose malware from China is different.
It's legal to knowingly install something on my computer that will copy all my data to a third party and then scramble it on my computer if I should so desire.
But then again, it's not much different from certain substance being illegal while alcohol is age controlled and it being legal to drink cleaning agent for “health reasons”.
Re: (Score:3)
Is this an autogenerated troll, or did a human think this was a compelling argument?
Re:Chinese Spyware and Malware (Score:4)
They are saying that its legal for me to do what I want with my device, provided the software in question has the correct legal warnings.
Same as with drugs one uses (alcohol is a drug, marijuana is a drug, crack cocaine is a drug), as long as the person knows the risks, they should be able to use it. That is their argument.
It is a bit ignorant to assume the users are educated, as users tend to be lowest common denominator. This is why snake oil became illegal to sell.... same reason why we have consumer protections.
A pure capitalistic society, one the person is arguing about, cannot exist because we value human life and dignity.... on some level.
But TikTok is not the only software out there that tracks everything of that user, so why tiktok? Because the USA government can control and have access to the other applications, where as tiktok is under the control of China.
But thats really not the big issue if one looks at it. Its more how social media is manipulated and controlled by the corporate entities to cause chaos and mischief amongst its users. A point totally missed by politicians, because in their mind.... even though they are doing this, capitalism should exist in a vacuum.
Now you should get the point they are trying to make.
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They are saying that its legal for me to do what I want with my device, provided the software in question has the correct legal warnings.
What do you plebes have to do with anything? This is about government devices.
Re:Chinese Spyware and Malware (Score:4, Informative)
They are saying that its legal for me to do what I want with my device, provided the software in question has the correct legal warnings.
What do you plebes have to do with anything? This is about government devices.
A thousand times this!
TikTok really has no business being on a Government computer, unless the purpose of the computer is specifically to keep an eye on TikTok. Then it should be a sacrificial computer.
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So then, by this logic, youtube, facebook, et al...apps are also not allowed then? Yes? Is it this? A thousand times? ;)
In many cases - yes.
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You'll find that some humans think arguments from consistency are quite compelling. You'll see them made every day outside outside of caveman politics where actions are judged on their merit, not on the nationality of who commits them.
Re:Chinese Spyware and Malware (Score:4, Informative)
It's legal to knowingly install something on my computer that will copy all my data to a third party and then scramble it on my computer if I should so desire.
This law is not about you and your personal device, it's about government employees and the government devices issued to them. The government employee who is issued a device does not own that device, and has no say on what apps get installed on that device.
You're still free to install whatever malware you want to on your personal device.
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Perhaps so, but to make a law against one specific piece of software when so much more exists, especially when coming from a government that is known to put pressure on companies such as Microsoft or intel to plant back doors for them is oddly specific.
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It's actually not legal to misuse cleaning products, just FYI.
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Here come the whataboutisms about how the US is evil and such.
Don't forget that China not just bans US stuff, they ban entire companies like Google, so getting a foreign intel platform^W&Wsocial network off government phones just is common sense.
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They ban companies that don't comply with their censorship rules. If you comply, they allow such companies. US is not allowing any method of compliance.
It is really quite simple (Score:3)
Details (Score:2)
I'm curious of the exact wording
To be fair. (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: To be fair. (Score:2)
The inefficiency of government (Score:1)
Even more, why are they passing specific laws instead of having a group that handles security, including any whitelists or blacklists that are needed? They are using this as a signal to China, not making a serious law.
Re: The inefficiency of government (Score:2)
Biology (Score:1)
Look at that through a Darwinian lens: government is full of senile old farts suffering from dementia and years of drug abuse (SOFSFDAYODA) because that is who government, as a process, selects for. They are all this way.
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If they did it silently, we wouldn't be talking about it here.
But doing it loudly makes it appear as if they care, as if they tried to do something, even if it does virtually nothing.
The Optics(tm) (Score:1)
It seems to be all about the optics. Loudly do nothing effective about some perceived problem, while ignoring real problems, and even if what you do is both ineffective and expensive, most voters nod and go right back to sleep.
And so it should be (Score:3)
Spending bill (Score:2)
How strange that this is an inclusion in a massive spending bill that nobody read. I'd expect stuff like roads, schools or renewable energy, not a directive on using a website. In a proper functioning democracy, there would be a debate about this in parliament (and it would still be rightfully banned). The US representatives are too busy throwing each other under the bus.
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How strange that this is an inclusion in a massive spending bill that nobody read.
It's not strange in the USA, it's SOP.
In a proper functioning democracy, there would be a debate about this in parliament
This is not and never has been a democracy. It is labeled as a democracy, further labeled as a republic, and is actually an oligarchy. The founders of the country, all landed white men, gave the vote only to landed white men in order to preserve it.
(and it would still be rightfully banned)
No, that's stupid. China is an adversary, and most nations in the world (including the whole of the EU) have rules about who can receive PII.
Re:Spending bill (Score:4, Interesting)
While you are technically correct in your definition of true democracy, the USA does have a functioning democracy in that voters can (and do) play a role in change of power (see 2008, 2016 and 2020). A true oligarchy gets power and doesn't release it. The USA has had many dramatic changes of power over the years negating your assertion of oligarchy.
While there are certainly some very rich politicians, the bigger problem is those "influencers" who use their money to get the politicians to do what they want. The problem with rich politicians if their self serving attitude in following their own "rich get richer" interests. The problem with poor politicians is that they are easy to "buy" in their quest to get richer.
I am pretty certain you won't find any "democracy" in the world with only "common worker" type politicians. Russia tried it in 1917 and look where that got them....China, Cuba, Venezuela all had so called revolutions that left them worse off.
There is no perfect system. The USA needs to find a formula to get the extremists (on both sides) out of the equation and things will settle down.
Re: Spending bill (Score:1)
If you can't stop a corporation from not regulating itself the very next stop on that bus is congress.
Re: (Score:2)
In a proper functioning democracy, there would be a debate about this in parliament
This is not and never has been a democracy. It is labeled as a democracy, further labeled as a republic, and is actually an oligarchy. The founders of the country, all landed white men, gave the vote only to landed white men in order to preserve it.
I await the day of America's advance to true democracy, when I can spend my entire day voting on everything from tax assessments on plastic bags in Pasadena, CA to appropriations of funds for marking lanes on old streets in New Jersey. It'll be glorious.
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How strange that this is an inclusion in a massive spending bill that nobody read.
It is not that nobody reads it (those who vote read it, or have advisers/counsellors who do) but that this confers guaranteed approval for this provision (nobody is going to vote against the annual budget bill specifically because of this detail) and therefore, as you noted, bypasses the debate. This provides incentive for congressmen to request these additions, hoping nobody will care too much about them.
This practice theoretically prohibited in several countries (according to sources from the Constitution
Re: Spending bill (Score:2)
Passive voice is a sign of fuckery or idiocy (Score:2)
The bill, which still has to be signed into law by President Joe Biden, also calls on e-commerce platforms to do more vetting to help deter counterfeit goods from being sold online
"to help deter vendors from selling counterfeit goods online"
Because there's no way to write it as it was written unless your goal is to make excuses for the vendors selling these products, who are absolutely doing so knowingly.
It ... was allowed before? (Score:2)
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It ... was allowed before?
"Everything that is not forbidden is allowed" (legal maxim) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
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Not necessarily on systems that are supposed to be secure. They have a whitelist of installable products.
In fact, givernment had secure servers to host these...oh, wait. That was breached, too.
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The people live materially better than under communism.
This proves economic freedom from totalitarian control gives people the breathing room to improve their lives themselves.
That it's also a rotten government is simultaneously a lesson for everyone, and in particular the western leaders who thought such openness via economic engagement would prevent the dirtier aspects.
Yet here forms the same nationalism about Taiwan that is happening in Ukraine, or Nazi Germany and the Sudatenland.
Re: (Score:2)
Because tiktok is easily identifiable ant it's " tha big bad CCP", amd Joe and jJane avarage has heard about it. Which adds up to easy soundbites, and the congress critters lives nothing more than easy soundbites
TikTok can be observed doing what it does. The internetz is kinda like that you know. Unless your premise is that TikTok sits there does nothing, and that the evulz USA is just picking on China. You can even find out what it does yourself.
Doing it backwards. (Score:4, Interesting)
Reading between the lines, it sounds like people are authorized to install anything they want on government devices unless explicitly told not to.
Is that true? I dunno - I'm not a government employee. It sounds like a dumbass way to do things, but what do I know.
I was a sysadmin for almost 20 years, and in my dream world, users don't even get a keyboard, just a monitor that shows them videos of right-think and tells them what to do next.
Re: (Score:2)
Reading between the lines, it sounds like people are authorized to install anything they want on government devices unless explicitly told not to.
Is that true? I dunno - I'm not a government employee. It sounds like a dumbass way to do things, but what do I know.
I'm reading this as an expansion of a restriction into a device that has an unmanaged section. Using something like Intune my own work device is effectively split in two. Under the work profile I have heavy restrictions of what I can install and what it can access, and in the private profile I can do whatever the **** I want, and the two profiles have limited one way communication (I can read private files from my work profile, but not the other way around).
But this also comes with some device level restric
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It's not just government. Family, friends, etc. too. The non-techie types.
Banned under spending bill... (Score:2)
Say what you want about TikTok, but most sane democracies in the world have rules against riding anything on a spending bill, in many cases it's codified in their constitution.
Why was it allowed in the first place? (Score:2)
Surely such important institutions like governments should use the whitelist model when it comes to allowed software, and not allow employees to install what they please on company devices? You are allowed to run authorised software required by your role and that's it. It's not your device. End of story.
Work Instead (Score:2)
Does TikTok help the government do its job? (Score:2)