Justice Dept. Investigates TikTok Parent Over Unlawful Data-Gathering

The U.S. Justice Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating whether TikTok parent Byte Dance unlawfully gathered user data, including journalists who cover technology companies. In December, ByteDance fired four employees after discovering that they pulled the IP addresses and other data of two journalists. The video-sharing app has come under the scrutiny of lawmakers and the Biden administration, which is pressuring ByteDance to divest of TikTok. The company is instead pushing for strict government oversight, including third-party protection and review of the app’s data and code. The company has argued that its plan would address data privacy and oversight issues.