The days of endless scrolling could soon be over, as lawmakers in Washington, D.C., introduced new legislation on Tuesday that would look to get rid of the social media giant TikTok in the United States.
The call to ban the social media platform on domestic soil comes after FBI Director Christopher Wray and cyber security experts warned of potential risks, including China using it for spying on Americans.
The bill was introduced and sponsored by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), and it contained a companion measure introduced by House Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL).
According to a press release from the lawmakers, the bill aims to “protect Americans by blocking and prohibiting all transactions from any social media company in, or under the influence of, China, Russia, and several other foreign countries of concern.”
Under the bill, the president would be given the authority to sanction TikTok, and other social media companies, stopping them from operating commercially in the U.S. Lawmakers say it will protect Americans from foreign nations looking to surveil them with negative intent.
The bill will most likely not be considered this year, being that there are only a few days left in the current session of Congress. However, it could be reintroduced next year.
Several states have already moved to ban TikTok from government-run devices due to worry of potential influence or espionage taking place through data collected.
Among those states was Maryland, which banned the app and other Chinese and Russian products from state agencies. This came after a report from NBC News found that hackers were linked to China’s government stealing millions of COVID benefits from state governments in the U.S.
TikTok responded to the move from Maryland, and a spokesperson shared a statement saying the concerns about the app have no merit.
“We believe the concerns driving these bans are largely fueled by misinformation about our company,” the spokesperson said. “We are always happy to meet with state policymakers to discuss our privacy and security practices.”
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