TikTok's most popular House lawmaker talks security, potential ban

Ali Vitali and Zoë Richards and Kate Santaliz
Updated ·3 min read

WASHINGTON — A TikTok-famous North Carolina lawmaker said Wednesday that while he recognizes "real" security concerns tied to the Chinese-owned video app, he also doesn't see a ban as inevitable.

Democratic Rep. Jeff Jackson, who boasts 1.2 million followers on TikTok, said in an interview that he attributes some of his public recognition to the popular app, which has helped him reach constituents of varying ages.

“It just happens to be the case that you get way more views on TikTok than you do on Instagram or Facebook. Like 10 times as many," said Jackson, 40. "I have been able to reach a lot of people, and at the same time I think the security concerns are real."

FBI Director Christopher Wray warned in November that the app, owned by Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., poses national security risks and that China's government could use it to influence U.S. users or control their devices.

“I don’t think he was being hyperbolic,” Jackson said.

Jackson said data privacy and concerns about the app's algorithm highlighted by Wray "are going to be very hard to resolve as long as this remains a Chinese-owned company."

TikTok's chief executive, Shou Zi Chew, is set to testify to Congress for the first time Thursday in a hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Committee. His appearance comes amid a bipartisan push to address security concerns surrounding the app but also as TikTok's supporters voice their opposition to a potential ban.

Asked whether he believed TikTok was too big to ban, based on its millions of U.S. users, Jackson said, "I think they have a case to make about how many Americans are using this, and I think the case is that a ban is clearly not the best-case scenario."

Instead, he argued, a change in ownership was “necessary at this point.” If that doesn’t happen, however, Jackson would back a ban — putting him in line with the Biden administration’s own ultimatum on the matter.

A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement last week, "If protecting national security is the objective, divestment doesn’t solve the problem: a change in ownership would not impose any new restrictions on data flows or access."

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said last week that the U.S. had failed to provide any evidence that TikTok poses a threat to its national security.

Defending his own use of the app, Jackson said he has taken steps to ensure data protection, including keeping a "burner phone" whose sole application is TikTok. He said he doesn't have the app on his government-issued or personal phones. TikTok is banned on House-issued mobile devices.

"It’s worth it to have a dedicated phone and to have it be a bit of a headache sometimes to use, just because there are a lot of people I can reach," Jackson said.

A measure banning TikTok on some government devices was included in the $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill President Joe Biden signed into law late last year.

The app has helped Jackson, a first-term House member whose TikTok base is outpaced by Sen. Bernie Sanders' 1.4 million, reach a wide audience, including users at a senior living facility in his district.

"People appreciate that I’m on TikTok," he said. "I get recognized more in public because of TikTok, frankly, than any other app. People mentioned to me more having seen me on TikTok than other places."

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com