SOCIAL
TikTok Seeks to Address Data Security Concerns, as FBI Calls for Full Ban of the App

Really, the only thing that could truly halt TikTok’s meteoric rise right now is government regulation, with authorities in several regions continuing to analyze the app’s potential ties to the Chinese Government, and the security of user data in this respect.
The US Committee on Foreign Investment (CFIUS) has been investigating TikTok for years, which has seen several senior officials related to the investigation publicly calling for the app to be banned over such concerns.
And today, the FBI joined those calls, with FBI Director Chris Wray saying that, in his assessment, the app does indeed pose a national security threat.
As reported by Reuters:
‘[According to Wray] the risks include “the possibility that the Chinese government could use [TikTok] to control data collection on millions of users or control the recommendation algorithm, which could be used for influence operations,” Wray also said that Beijing could use the popular app to “control software on millions of devices,” giving it the opportunity to “technically compromise” those devices.”
Such claims are nothing new – TikTok’s been facing these same accusations since its launch in the US, with the concerns increasing over time, as the app’s influence continues to expand.
TikTok has repeatedly sought to reassure users that their data is definitely not being accessed by the CCP, yet, at the same time, all of TikTok’s user agreements do note that China-based staff can access user data for certain functions.
Which is why it remains under a cloud – and while TikTok says that it’s in the midst of a major project to address all US concerns about its data security, various officials have continued to sound the alarm over the app’s potential exposure to the CCP.
Back in June, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr published an open letter which called on both Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores due to TikTok’s ‘pattern of surreptitious data practices’, while in September, Republican senator Josh Hawley urged CFIUS, once again, to force TikTok to sever all ties with parent company ByteDance.
Former US President Donald Trump had, at one stage, threatened a full ban of the app over its links to Chinese Government – though the reasoning for such action wasn’t entirely clear, with Trump, at different times, claiming that he was seeking to ban TikTok due to data concerns, but also, to punish China for the spread of COVID-19.
The confused reasoning eventually saw the TikTok ban fall by the wayside, with the Biden Administration moving to abandon Trump’s push once it was elected. Trump’s threat did, however, lead to a data storage deal between TikTok and Oracle, which is what TikTok is now leaning on (called ‘Project Texas’) as a key element in its efforts to address concerns.
And clearly, those concerns are still lingering, and as CFIUS continues to investigate the app – along with separate explorations in the UK and other regions – there is still a chance that TikTok could be banned in the western world.
Really, a lot of what comes next will hinge on the actions of the Chinese Government, which often takes an adversarial approach to foreign relations. If tensions with the CCP increase, in any region, TikTok may well be a victim, and it’s impossible to know what might be coming next in this respect.
In other words, a full ban of TikTok still seems unlikely, but that could change very fast.
SOCIAL
How to Train ChatGPT to Write in Your Brand’s Tone of Voice [Infographic]
![How to Train ChatGPT to Write in Your Brand’s Tone of Voice [Infographic] How to Train ChatGPT to Write in Your Brand’s Tone of Voice [Infographic]](https://articles.entireweb.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/1702266964_How-to-Train-ChatGPT-to-Write-in-Your-Brands-Tone.jpg)
Are you looking for ways to improve your ChatGPT output? Want to train it to write in a more unique tone of voice, in order to better suit your branding?
The Creative Marketer shares his ChatGPT prompt tips in this infographic. To enact these, add “Write like [INSERT CHARACTER]” at the start of your ChatGPT instructions.
TCM breaks things down into the following categories:
- Innocent
- Sage
- Explorer
- Ruler
- Creator
- Caregiver
- Lover
- Hero
- Everyman
- Magician
- Jester
- Outlaw
Check out the infographic for more information.
A version of this post was first published on the Red Website Design blog.
SOCIAL
Elon Musk reinstates far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on X

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones has been reinstated on X, formerly known as Twitter, by company owner Elon Musk – Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File Joe Buglewicz
Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, on Sunday reinstated far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on the social media platform, a year after vowing never to let him return.
Jones, who claimed that a December 2012 school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut that killed 20 children and six educators was a hoax, was banned from the platform — then still known as Twitter — in 2018 for violating its “abusive behavior policy.”
He was also sued by families of the victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting and ordered by a judge in the case to pay up more than a billion dollars in damages last year.
Musk had himself promised never to let the Infowars host back on the social media platform, which he bought last year for $44 billion.
But following a poll Musk conducted on X asking whether Jones should be reinstated, to which some two million users responded, he flipped that decision.
“I vehemently disagree with what he said about Sandy Hook, but are we a platform that believes in freedom of speech or are we not?” the SpaceX founder said on X.
But Shannon Watts, founder of the group Moms Demand Action group which pushes for tighter gun laws, said that “defamation is not free speech.”
Musk’s decision comes the same week that the Sandy Hook families commemorate the 11th anniversary of the December 14 shooting, which Jones alleged was staged to allow the government to crack down on gun rights.
Jones’ followers harassed the bereaved families for years, accusing parents of murdered children of being “crisis actors” whose children had never existed.
It also came a week after Musk had responded to advertisers pulling out of X because of far-right posts and hate speech, including an apparent endorsement by Musk himself of an anti-Semitic tweet.
Asked whether he would respond to the advertising exodus, Musk said in an interview with journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin that the advertisers could “go f*** yourself.”
Jones, who has a million followers on X, returned to the site with his first post re-tweeting Andrew Tate, the controversial former kickboxer facing rape and human trafficking charges in Romania, in which he hailed Jones’ “triumphant return”
US media reported that as of Sunday, the account of Jones’ controversial show Infowars was still banned.
SOCIAL
Instagram Launches New ‘Close Friends Only’ Podcast to Showcase Celebrity Users

Not sure if this will be a valuable addition, or another stream that’ll fade out pretty quick, as Meta stops paying attention to it.
Today, Instagram has launched a new podcast called “Close Friends Only”, which it says will present “the latest on culture – from memes and icks, to fashion and friendship – all from your favorite celebrities.”
And they’ve gone big out of the gate, with the first episode featuring Ice Spice in conversation with Doja Cat.
The conversation sees the two stars discuss their favorite memes, their favorite animals, celebrity crushes, experiences in flirting on IG, their juiciest DMs, and more.
Which will no doubt get a heap of attention, and will help make Instagram a bigger focus for youngsters seeking to replicate their idols. But in terms of practical advice or tips, yeah, there might not be a heap there.
But it could be worth tuning in anyway, in order to get the lowdown on the latest trends, from some of the people that are leading the way on cultural shifts.
But then again, as noted, it’ll be interesting to see how IG follows this first episode up, and whether they keep running regular episodes of the podcast with more celebrities.
Either way, it’s an interesting promotional vehicle for IG, especially given that it’s focusing on musicians, as TikTok becomes an even more critical platform for music promotion.
Maybe, then, this will be Instagram’s counter to that, but again, we’ll have to wait and see whether more episodes arrive.
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