TikTok is under intense scrutiny in the US and Europe alike over data security: the question of whether users’ data is being shared with parent company ByteDance in China, and thus potentially with the Chinese authorities.
TikTok’s latest efforts to respond to the fears (and stave off potential legislative action) comes in Europe with ‘Project Clover’.
“A program focused on creating a secure enclave for European TikTok user data,” as its VP of government relations and public policy Theo Bertram (an ex-Googler who you may remember from the heyday of the ‘value gap’ arguments) put it.
His blog post outlines the various technical measures TikTok plans to take to keep its 150 million European users’ data secure, including storing it locally; being checked by an external security company; and (take note of this word, Scrabble fans*) the ‘pseudonymisation’ of personal data.
These are welcome measures, although it remains to be seen if they mollify TikTok’s critics in the corridors of Brussels and Westminster.
*Yes, we know it doesn’t fit on the board. Yes, we checked…
Music Ally’s next Learn Live webinar will help you understand what’s required for artists to thrive in new international markets!