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| Biden cancels Trump's order to ban Tik Tok |
President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday to lift the Trump-era ban on the TikTok and WeChat platforms.
Rather than being Trump's orders, Biden is directing the Commerce Secretary to investigate requests related to foreign adversaries that may pose risks to US privacy or national security.
The decree replaces a number of executive orders issued by President Trump last year that banned Tik Tok, WeChat and Alipay from the US App Store and took additional steps to prevent them from operating in the United States.
The more extreme effects of these orders have been thwarted by ongoing appeals to the courts. But Wednesday's order will cancel the order completely.
Instead, Biden has ordered a new framework for identifying national security risks in transactions involving government or military applications from foreign adversaries such as China or the collection of sensitive data from consumers.
A senior government official said the government is intent on promoting an open, interoperable, reliable and secure Internet, protecting human rights both online and offline, and supporting a dynamic global digital economy.
"The challenge we face is that some countries, including China, do not share these commitments or values," the official added. Instead, US digital technologies and data are used in ways that pose an unacceptable risk to national security.
Lift Trump's order to ban Tik Tok:
Wednesday's order requires the Commerce Department and other federal agencies to work together to develop recommendations to prevent the collection, sale and transfer of sensitive US consumer data to foreign counterparties.
The Ministry of Commerce is expected to propose administrative or legislative measures in the future to address these issues.
However, this case did not include any action or investigation by the United States Commission on Foreign Investment or the CFIUS.
Under the leadership of the Trump administration, CFIUS has set several deadlines for apps like TikTok to part with its Chinese owner ByteDance.
In recent months, it has been reported that Oracle is preparing to acquire TikTok to circumvent previous government bans. But this deal did not take place.
A senior government official said, "The US government continues to actively discuss CFIUS' actions."
Wednesday's order is just one step by the Biden government in addressing China's challenges.
Biden signed a separate order last week extending a ban on US investments in Trump-era Chinese companies allegedly linked to the Chinese military.
The regulation identified 59 companies prohibited from investing. Including companies that develop and use surveillance technology to combat Hong Kong's Muslim minorities and anti-government groups.
A senior government official said Wednesday that Biden expects to take more action against China when he takes office for the first time and meets with leaders of the Group of Seven, NATO and the European Union.