Japan ruling party group eyes ban on TikTok, other apps – lawmaker
FILE PHOTO: A person holds a smartphone as TikTok logo is displayed behind in this picture illustration taken November 7, 2019. Picture taken November 7, 2019. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
TOKYO — A group of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lawmakers is planning to compile a proposal next month urging the government to ban social networking services such as TikTok if they are used for disinformation campaigns, an LDP lawmaker said Monday.
Many U.S. lawmakers are calling on the Biden administration to ban the popular Chinese-owned social media app, alleging the app could be used for data collection and content censorship, and harm children’s mental health.
READ: TikTok out of gov’t devices in 30 days – White House
“If it’s verified that an app has been intentionally used by a certain party of a certain country for their influence operations with malice …, promptly halting the service should be considered,” Norihiro Nakayama told Reuters in an interview.
Nakayama, a senior member of a ruling party lawmakers’ group looking into ways to enhance Japan’s economic security, said the group plans to compile the recommendation next month, adding that the proposal will not be targeting any particular platform.
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