The China-based social media giant TikTok, on the one hand, is an example for Instagram and YouTube with its features; on the other hand Make it a ‘global tracking app’ Growing steadily. The latest critical findings on these concerns are the iOS developer and cybersecurity expert who made the cover of Forbes magazine in Germany while working at Twitter. Felix KrauseIt came from , so the source is pretty reliable.

According to the evidence presented by Krause, the in-app browser that opens when you click a link in TikTok (like the browser that opens when you click links on Instagram), critical information such as credit card and password The recorder has a secret code. In other words, if you see a different website link while browsing TikTok, it’s not just that you clicked that link; Likewise, the information you use while shopping on that link is recorded.

“Equivalent to keylogger software that monitors every key you press”

“New Post: In-App Browser Announcement – See which JavaScript commands are embedded in the in-app browser”

“TikTok puts a tracking code in the app that can track all keystrokes and taps, including passwords, while opening a website.”

Krause shared his allegations and evidence both on his personal blog and on Twitter on Aug. 18, stating in his statement to Business Insider that the code used is “equivalent to a keylogger.” Keylogger software is one of the most rooted cyber tracking software in the IT world and It records every key you press on the keyboard and shares it with third parties without your soul hearing.. Kreuse, however, limited his claim by stating that “TikTok stores or uses this data. unable to find concrete evidence‘ stilt.

TikTok has confirmed the existence of such a code, but has denied allegations that it was collecting sensitive user information:

The TikTok spokesperson made statements on the subject, stating that Krause gave misleading and false information, adding: “The researcher who published the report already acknowledges that it doesn’t mean that our application does ‘evil things’ with the JavaScript code in question; it says there is no way to control what kind of data our in-app crawler collects. We do not track keystrokes or texts users type through this code, which is only used for debugging, troubleshooting, and performance monitoring.”

Open Call to Apple: Use Safari for In-App Browsers

Felix Krause, who said he found TikTok’s tracking code

apples Application Transparency Check policy instantly let iPhone users know which application is tracked for a long time. However, the in-app browser that opens when using TikTok on iPhones is not from Apple. In apps like Instagram, users have the right to choose it, but Apple has given TikTok some wiggle room, Krause said. According to the expert’s statements, Apple’s enforcement of the Safari browser in TikTok could be an important step in allaying the concerns.

Editor’s Note: The trade war of US and Chinese brands is felt behind all these claims.

Photo: REUTERS @Jason Lee

Kreuse’s comments aren’t the first to raise concerns about TikTok. In fact, the origin of most of these claims lies in competition from social media giants representing the US and China. If you remember, in the past years Apple and Huawei rivalry turned into Chinese and American rivalrySerious news appeared in the Western media that Huawei was a company that was tracking the world on behalf of the Chinese government, sanctions were even imposed on the relatives of senior executives in the US and Google withdrew all its services under pressure from the US government. from Huawei. Huawei also left Android, its own operating system, after a while HarmonyOS He decided to go ahead with it.

In fact, studies on TikTok have a similar dynamic to those on Huawei. What is different this time, however, is not a smartphone manufacturer of the accused company, but a social media application that spreads much faster because it is free and can be reached in a short time. In addition, the Chinese government’s support for technology companies and the “point citizenship” system Given the applications like these, the developments reported in the western media make more sense. Still, everything written and signed needs more concrete evidence, but unfortunately no global giant is used to billions of dollars in sanctions and closure penalties saying ‘this is how we follow you all’.

In the meantime, it should be noted that TikTok has been banned for about 2 years in India, the pilot country of Western tech giants, with similar concerns.