Why TikTok Faces a US Ban Over National Security: QuickTake

Depending on whom you ask, the short-form video platform TikTok is either a showcase for goofy dances and makeup tutorials or a sophisticated threat to US national security. Because TikTok Inc. is owned by a Chinese company, ByteDance Ltd. — and because China requires its companies, upon request, to share any national security-related data with the government — TikTok’s popularity among Americans carries implications beyond the mobile-phone screen. That’s on top of hand-wringing by parents, educators and mental-health experts about whether TikTok’s content and addictive nature are unhealthy for young minds.

The US House of Representatives passed a bill on ...