TikTok

Should the US ban TikTok? Can it? A cybersecurity expert explains the risks the app poses and the challenges to blocking it ........ What data privacy risk does TikTok pose? What could the Chinese government do with data collected by the app? Is its content recommendation algorithm dangerous? And is it even possible to ban an app? ....... every few years a new mobile app that becomes popular raises issues of security, privacy and data access........ most apps collect data that the companies use in part to fund their operations. This revenue typically comes from targeting users with ads based on the data they collect. The questions this use of data raises are: Does the app need all this data? What does it do with the data? And how does it protect the data from others? ........ what makes TikTok different from the likes of Pokemon-GO, Facebook or even your phone itself? ......... Overall, the company is not particularly transparent about its practices. .......... If most apps collect data, why is the U.S. government worried about TikTok? First, they worry about the Chinese government accessing data from its 150 million users in the U.S. There is also a concern about the algorithms used by TikTok to show content. .......... The Chinese government is known for playing the long game, and data is power, so if it is collecting data, it could take years to learn how it benefits China. ....... The Justice Department is investigating TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, for using the app to monitor U.S. journalists. The Chinese government has an extensive history of hacking U.S. government agencies and corporations, and much of that hacking has been facilitated by social engineering –

the practice of using data about people to trick them into revealing more information

. ........... TikTok and most social media apps have algorithms designed to learn a user’s interests and then try to adjust the content so the user will continue to use the app. ......... The algorithm could be biased in a way that influences a population to believe certain things. There are numerous allegations that TiKTok’s algorithm is biased and can reinforce negative thoughts among younger users, and be used to affect public opinion. It could be that the algorithm’s manipulative behavior is unintentional, but there is concern that the Chinese government has been using or could use the algorithm to influence people. ............ an absolute ban will be tough to enforce. ........ By some estimates, the Chinese government has already collected personal information on at least 80% of the U.S. population via various means. So a ban might limit the damage going forward to some degree, but the Chinese government has already collected a significant amount of data. .......... The Chinese government also has access – along with anyone else with money – to the large market for personal data ............ the most significant risks are to people in power, whether it is political power or within a company. Their data and information could be used to gain access to other data or potentially compromise the organizations they are associated with. ........... families should have conversions about TikTok and other social media platforms and how they can be detrimental to mental health. These conversations should focus on how to determine if the app is leading you down an unhealthy path. .

January 28: Ukraine, TikTok

A New Generation of Influencers Has Discovered D.I.Y. on a Tiny Budget With enough spray paint, hot glue and successful thrift-store runs, almost any space can look like it belongs on the internet. ....... Relying heavily on Dollar Store finds and Home Depot lumber, these influencers reject the idea that an Instagram-worthy living room requires a four-figure, or even a three-figure budget. ........ Renters and homeowners can learn how to turn Ikea dressers or yard-sale lampshades into sassy centerpieces. ....... Ms. Shaw renovated her parents’ living room, dining room, kitchen, patio and family room for a cool $1,000, showing that with enough elbow grease and sandpaper, almost anything can be worthy of a big reveal. ....... To pay for the project at her parents’ house, Ms. Shaw sold their old furniture online and used the proceeds to buy new materials. She celebrated her finds, like a tree stump that she sanded, sealed and made into a table for the new patio ........ Drew Scott recently gave his mother’s drab bathroom a renter-friendly makeover for less than $300 .......

The channel is now Mr. Scott’s full-time job.

In long, peppy tutorials he shows his subscribers how to make a flower pot out of an old paint can and wood dowels, or how to build a headboard out of cane and pine. ........ Ms. Basnight found that once she focused her videos on the process and not simply the results, her following grew. ....... She now has 224,000 followers, and earned $267,000 as an influencer in 2021 ........ she quit her job as a software engineer to focus on her social media presence. ........ Now, more than a decade into their channel, and with 2.1 million subscribers, Sorry Girls operates out of a Toronto office with a staff of 10. College days might be long behind them, but they still focus on affordable décor. ....... using thrift-store finds ........... with enough spray paint, hot glue and fruitful thrift-store runs, almost any space can look like it belongs on the internet. .

If Russia invades, the Biden administration plans to hit Russian banks harder than ever before. . .

After a Putin-Macron phone call, Paris touts dialogue but Moscow says its concerns weren’t addressed. . Mr. Putin said he had “no offensive plans” in eastern Ukraine ........ “President Putin said very clearly that he was not seeking confrontation, that he was seeking de-escalation.” The conciliatory tone the official described was in contrast to the far more threatening picture outlined by officials at the Pentagon and the White House. ....... French officials say the discussions are a way to keep Russia engaged diplomatically and cool down tensions. .......

Neither Paris nor Berlin see the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine with the same urgency as Washington

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