TikTok says Oracle to keep US user data safe

TikTok says it is working to ‘fully pivot’ to having Oracle handle US user data.
– Copyright POOL/AFP/File Patrick Pleul

TikTok on Friday said Oracle will store all the data from its US users, in a bid to allay fears about its safety in the hands of a platform owned by ByteDance in China.

The popular video snippet sharing service will continue to use its own datacenters in Virginia and Singapore to backup information as it works to “fully pivot” to relying on Oracle in the United States, TikTok said in a post.

“We know we are among the most scrutinized platforms from a security standpoint, and we aim to remove any doubt about the security of US user data,” said Albert Calamug, who handles US security public policy at TikTok.

President Joe Biden last year revoked executive orders from his predecessor Donald Trump seeking to ban Chinese-owned apps TikTok and WeChat from US markets on national security concerns.

Trump had given his blessing to a plan that would have given TikTok to US tech giant Oracle with investments from retail powerhouse Walmart, but that deal failed to win approval in Beijing.

Biden’s new executive order nixed the unimplemented ban and called for “an evidence-based analysis to address the risks” from internet applications controlled by foreign entities.

WeChat, part of Chinese tech giant Tencent, is a “super app” which includes social networking, messaging, e-commerce and more.

TikTok revealed late last year that it had a billion users worldwide.

“Today, 100 percent of US user traffic is being routed to Oracle Cloud Infrastructure,” Calamug said.

“In addition, we’re working closely with Oracle to develop data management protocols that Oracle will audit and manage to give users even more peace of mind.”