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TikTok US Operations Under New Ownership to Address Security Concerns

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4 unique sources, 4 articles

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TikTok has finalized a deal to create a new American entity, avoiding a ban in the United States. The social video platform signed agreements with major investors including Oracle, Silver Lake, and the Emirati investment firm MGX to form the new TikTok U.S. joint venture. The new version will operate under defined safeguards that protect national security through comprehensive data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances for U.S. users. American TikTok users can continue using the same app. President Donald Trump praised the deal in a Truth Social post, thanking Chinese leader Xi Jinping specifically for working with the U.S. and approving the deal. Adam Presser, who previously worked as TikTok’s head of operations and trust and safety, will lead the new venture as its CEO. The new venture will be led by a seven-member, majority-American board of directors that includes TikTok’s CEO Shou Chew. Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX are the three managing investors, each holding a 15% share. Other investors include the investment firm of Michael Dell, the billionaire founder of Dell Technologies. TikTok has officially formed a joint venture, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, to continue operations in the U.S. under the 2025 Executive Order. The new venture, majority-owned by American investors, aims to address data privacy and security concerns by implementing comprehensive safeguards, including data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances. ByteDance will retain a 19.9% stake. The joint venture will operate under strict cybersecurity standards, including NIST CSF, ISO 27001, and CISA requirements, and will be audited by third-party experts. This development follows regulatory pressures and a temporary ban on TikTok in the U.S. Despite these changes, cybersecurity experts caution that significant risks remain, particularly around data collection, social engineering, and algorithm transparency. The approved framework agreement involves Oracle and other American investors managing TikTok's operations and algorithm. The new entity will fully control algorithms, code, and content moderation, with US user data stored in an American-run cloud environment. Security partners will monitor software, algorithms, and data flows, and ByteDance will be excluded from the company’s security committee. TikTok's algorithms and content recommendation models will be retrained using only US-approved data, ensuring no foreign influence. The deal is part of a broader effort to mitigate risks associated with TikTok's data handling practices and its obligations to the Chinese government. Concerns over these issues have led to regulatory actions in the US and other countries, including fines and bans on government devices.

Timeline

  1. 18.09.2025 23:28 4 articles · 4mo ago

    TikTok US Operations to Be Acquired by US Consortium

    TikTok officially announced the formation of a joint venture named TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC. The new venture, majority-owned by American investors, aims to address data privacy and security concerns by implementing comprehensive safeguards, including data protections, algorithm security, content moderation, and software assurances. ByteDance will retain a 19.9% stake. The joint venture will operate under strict cybersecurity standards, including NIST CSF, ISO 27001, and CISA requirements, and will be audited by third-party experts. The safeguards will also extend to CapCut, Lemon8, and TikTok's other apps and websites in the U.S. The attorney general was blocked from enforcing the national security law for a 120-day period to permit the contemplated divestiture to be completed. TikTok was briefly banned a year ago after a federal ban went into effect. The legislation, passed in April 2024, mandated that the service be made available either under American ownership or another entity, citing national security concerns over its Chinese owner, ByteDance. In late 2024, the Canadian government ordered TikTok to dissolve its operations in the country. President Donald Trump praised the deal in a Truth Social post, thanking Chinese leader Xi Jinping specifically for working with the U.S. and approving the deal. Adam Presser, who previously worked as TikTok’s head of operations and trust and safety, will lead the new venture as its CEO. The new venture will be led by a seven-member, majority-American board of directors that includes TikTok’s CEO Shou Chew. Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX are the three managing investors, each holding a 15% share. Other investors include the investment firm of Michael Dell, the billionaire founder of Dell Technologies.

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