Trump imposes US ban on WeChat, TikTok in 45 days

Tiktok has come under fire from US lawmakers and the administration over national security concerning data collection, amid intensified tension between Washington and Beijing. — Reuters

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump announced on Aug 6 sweeping bans on US transactions with China's ByteDance, owner of video-sharing app TikTok, and Tencent, operator of the WeChat app, starting in 45 days, in a major escalation of tensions with Beijing.

The executive orders come as the Trump administration said this week it was stepping up efforts to purge "untrusted" Chinese apps from US digital networks and called the Chinese-owned short-video app TikTok and messenger app WeChat "significant threats”.