Australia already has a reputation for taking on Chinese tech threats and the government should be doing that again, say a range of experts in Washington.
| Australia should consider copying a move by the US House of Representatives to force Chinese company ByteDanceThat’s the view of top defence technology experts in Washington after the House voted 352 to 65 in favour of a bill that would ban app stores from distributing the social media phenomenon in America if its China-based owner doesn’t sell it.
“Every government with TikTok users faces the threat of Beijing’s malign influence. The CCP can leverage TikTok to shape and mobilise public opinion in ways that weaken democratic institutions and divide citizens. Every country should be working overtime to cut off the CCP’s control of TikTok.” He said divestiture was the best mechanism because that still allowed the freedom to invest and profit without the power to conduct subversion and espionage.
Australia became the last “Five Eyes” security partner to ban TikTok from federal government devices in April last year, and while the Albanese government may not go as far as the US, it should still be sharpening its policies around this, he said.Derek Scissors, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said the CCP would treat Australian data in the same manner it treats trade negotiations.
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