Tiktok has come under a substantial amount of scrutiny in the western world, they are the most used and fastest growing social media app in the marketplace. The scrutiny comes from their parent company being based out of China and other countries say that the Chinese communist party has a lot of influence in the development and implementation of the app.
What is Tiktok?
TikTok is a social media app that allows users to create, share and discover short-form videos that are usually 15-60 seconds long. The app has become particularly popular among younger people such as teenagers for its music and dance content, but it also features a wide range of other content, including comedy, beauty, food, sports, etc. TikTok has been downloaded billions of times worldwide and has quickly become one of the most influential social media platforms.
Understanding the Security Risks of Tiktok: Can it Hack Your Phone?
The short answer is that while there is no concrete evidence to suggest that Tiktok is actively hacking users’ phones, the app’s data collection practices do raise some security and privacy concerns.
Tiktok collects massive amounts of data from its users, this includes information about location, device type, and amount of time a user spends on the app. They use this data to personalize the experience for users, serve targeted ads and improve the overall performance of the app.
While the collection of data by Tiktok are not unique among social media apps, the sheer amount of data that it collects raises lots of red flags among many privacy advocates. They also report that their are vulnerabilities in Tiktok’s code that could potentially be exploited by hackers to gain access to users phones.
With that being said its important to say that there is no definitive primary evidence to suggest that Tiktok is actively engaged in hacking users phones. However, users should still be careful about the types of information they share on the app and take steps to protect their data.
Here are some steps for users to take
- Reviewing and adjusting their privacy settings on the app to limit the amount of data that Tiktok can access.
- Using strong and unique passwords to protect their Tiktok account.
- Avoiding clicking on suspicious links or downloading unknown apps that could potentially contain malware or viruses.
- Keeping their phone’s operating system and apps up to date with the latest security patches and updates.
- Using anti-virus and anti-malware software to protect their device from potential threats.
The Technicalities of Tiktok: Examining How it Accesses Your Mobile Data
The main ways that Tiktok accesses this data is through its app permissions. When users download and install the Tiktok app, they are asked to grant permissions that allow the app to access some features of their device, like the camera, microphone, contacts, and location.
By granting these permissions, users are essentially giving Tiktok permission to access and collect data from their device. For example, allowing the app to access the camera and microphone, Tiktok is able to record and upload videos that users create. By allowing the app to access location data, Tiktok is able to provide location-based content and serve targeted ads. Tiktok also uses a variety of tracking features to collect data from users. For example, Tiktok uses cookies and other tracking technologies to track users’ online activity and behavior. They could also be collecting data while you are not using the app which be considered the Tiktok hack because they are using your phone as a data scraper with out your knowledge.
They also collect data from third- party services like their advertising partners. Which can further their growth online and create more profit.
Tiktok’s Privacy Policy
Here are some specific examples of Tiktok’s privacy policy that shows how much data they collect.
- “We automatically collect certain information from you when you use the Platform, including internet or other network activity information such as your IP address, geolocation-related data (as described below), unique device identifiers, browsing and search history (including content you have viewed in the Platform), and Cookies and similar technologies.”
- “We collect information about your device’s location when you use the Platform, which helps us offer features like our “Neighborhood” feature and other location-based services. We also use your location information to personalize the Platform, including ads shown to you.”
- “We may also receive information about you from third-party services, such as other users, partners (including ad partners), or our affiliated companies.”
- “We collect information about the device you use to access the Platform, including information about the device’s software, hardware, and mobile network connection, including your device’s advertising identifier, IP address, browser type, operating system, app version number, app usage statistics (e.g., how long the app is used and which features are used), carrier code, time zone, and the mobile network code/type
Is it worth it to download TikTok?
Whether or not it is worth it to download Tiktok, it depends on your personal preferences and values. Tiktok can be a fun and entertaining app that provides a platform for creative expression and community building. However, like any social media app, Tiktok has its drawbacks like this stuff we just described.
We would recommend not downloading Tiktok
If you are learning how to disappear on the internet here is an article.
