Sen. Josh Hawley on TikTok: “This is crazy. This has to stop.”

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) - The president of Tiktok is set to address Congress Thursday concerning calls for an outright ban on the popular app in the U.S.

Shou Zi Chew is expected to talk about the 150 million users in America, up 50 percent since 2020, and what he calls a fundamental part of society.

Missouri Senator Josh Hawley has opposed the app, citing security fears and its ties to the Chinese Communist Party. Senator Hawley says the Chinese owner of the company now owns the personal information of millions of Americans.

“We learned this week that it looks like Tiktok has actually infiltrated state government websites,” said Sen. Hawley. “So when you go to renew your driver’s license online, TikTok might actually be collecting your personal information. This is crazy. This has got to stop, and the way we stop it is we ban it.”

About 30 TikTok creators rallied on the Capitol steps to support the app on Wednesday.

TikTok’s president Shou Zi Chew has been vocal on social media this week. In a video posted on TikTok, Chew said he will outline the company’s data protection and security efforts before Congress. He said the data from U.S. users are now being routed through servers controlled by “Oracle,” a third-party Silicon Valley Company, to avoid a nationwide ban. He says older U.S. data will be moved to that server, cutting off any foreign access to the data.

He is expected to address Congress Thursday morning.

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