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https://www.geek.com/tech/senators-want-to-ban-tiktok-from-all-government-devices-1820225/?source
China-owned TikTok has taken the world by storm, but not everyone admires the app.
U.S. Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) this week introduced legislation banning all federal employees from using TikTok on government devices.
Due, they said, to cybersecurity concerns and possible spying by the Chinese government.
“TikTok is owned by a Chinese company that includes Chinese Community Party members on its board, and it is required by law to share user data with Beijing,” according to Hawley.
“The company even admitted it collects user data while their app is running in the background,” including shared messages and pictures, keystrokes, and location data, he said in a statement.
If passed, the bill would prohibit certain individuals from downloading or using TikTok on any device issued by the United States or a government corporation.
(Investigations, cybersecurity research activities, enforcement and disciplinary actions, or intelligence activities are exempt.)
“The use of apps like TikTok by federal employees on government devices is a risk to our networks and a threat to our national security,” Scott said.
“We should all be very concerned about the threat of Communist China,” he continued, “and I hope my colleagues will join me to implement this ban immediately and protect our national security.”
The Transportation Security Administration reportedly forbid employees from using TikTok to create social media posts.
Citing “concerns for the security of a federal agency” and “potentially the flying public,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) last month called out the TSA for still operating the social network.
Schumer previously flagged TikTok’s security risks—namely its collection and handling of user data—in an October letter to the intelligence community. The Department of Defence, State Department, and Department of Homeland Security responded by barring the app from government devices.
“As many of our federal agencies have already recognized,” Hawley pointed out, “TikTok is a major security risk to the United States, and it has no place on government devices.”
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
More on Geek.com:
China-owned TikTok has taken the world by storm, but not everyone admires the app.
U.S. Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.) this week introduced legislation banning all federal employees from using TikTok on government devices.
Due, they said, to cybersecurity concerns and possible spying by the Chinese government.
“TikTok is owned by a Chinese company that includes Chinese Community Party members on its board, and it is required by law to share user data with Beijing,” according to Hawley.
“The company even admitted it collects user data while their app is running in the background,” including shared messages and pictures, keystrokes, and location data, he said in a statement.
If passed, the bill would prohibit certain individuals from downloading or using TikTok on any device issued by the United States or a government corporation.
(Investigations, cybersecurity research activities, enforcement and disciplinary actions, or intelligence activities are exempt.)
“The use of apps like TikTok by federal employees on government devices is a risk to our networks and a threat to our national security,” Scott said.
“We should all be very concerned about the threat of Communist China,” he continued, “and I hope my colleagues will join me to implement this ban immediately and protect our national security.”
The Transportation Security Administration reportedly forbid employees from using TikTok to create social media posts.
Citing “concerns for the security of a federal agency” and “potentially the flying public,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) last month called out the TSA for still operating the social network.
Schumer previously flagged TikTok’s security risks—namely its collection and handling of user data—in an October letter to the intelligence community. The Department of Defence, State Department, and Department of Homeland Security responded by barring the app from government devices.
“As many of our federal agencies have already recognized,” Hawley pointed out, “TikTok is a major security risk to the United States, and it has no place on government devices.”
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
More on Geek.com:
- WHO Joins TikTok to Curb Coronavirus Misinformation
- TikTok Introduces Parental Controls That Kids Will Hate
- 11-Year-Old Gets ‘Scammed’ Into Paying $4K for TikTok Influencer
Here’s something cool: beloved childrens book author Beverly Cleary turns 104 today. The iconic author has written dozens of books and sold over 90 million copies worldwide, beginning with her first novel, Henry Huggins, in 1950. It was in that novel that Cleary created the indomitable Ramona Quimby, patron saint of scrappy little girls and children everywhere.
Ramona is one of those indelible literary characters that feels like she was written just for us. For every awkward, goofy, overly energetic kid, Ramona was a touchstone. Cleary’s writing impacted generations of kids, who learned that it was okay to be scared or sad, and that feeling things deeply was a part of life.
Many took to Twitter to celebrate Cleary’s life and career:
Beverly Cleary was in her 30's & working in a book store when she wondered if SHE could write. Turns out she could! She wrote over 40 books, selling 85 million copies. Authors live as long as their books are read. Cleary is still alive & still read at 104. Today is her birthday! pic.twitter.com/EG6a2xlIfu
— Peter MacNicol (@PeterMacNicol1) April 12, 2020
Happy birthday to the great Beverly Cleary who was 2 years old when the Spanish Flu came through and she’s still here.
— Jason Isbell (@JasonIsbell) April 12, 2020
Happy 103rd birthday to Beverly Cleary, a woman whose writing I loved so much as a kid I still haven’t been able to part with these raggedy old things
pic.twitter.com/9rv7NRc3yz
— Ari Scott (@ariscott) April 12, 2019
A very happy 104th birthday to national treasure Beverly Cleary.
I think I'll reread Ramona the Pest today. Here's one of my favorite lines: “She was not a slowpoke grownup. She was a girl who could not wait. Life was so interesting she had to find out what happened next.” pic.twitter.com/oVvWU9KY3J
— Amanda MacGregor (@CiteSomething) April 12, 2020
Happy birthday Beverly Cleary! In honor of her 104th birthday, we're sharing some of our favorite books she has written. https://t.co/4hv8t9l0cK
— NY Public Library (@nypl) April 12, 2020
Beverly Cleary, who has helped instill a love of reading in children for decades, was born 104 years ago today. Like many of us, she worked under the editorial supervision of a cat. pic.twitter.com/SZdbuQABFY
— David C. Tucker (@DavCTucker) April 12, 2020
Happy 104th birthday to the great Beverly Cleary! pic.twitter.com/Uiid5tyEkr
— Karen Kilgariff (@KarenKilgariff) April 12, 2020
Beverly Cleary, 100, wrote a personal response to my 7 yo daughter's fan mail
pic.twitter.com/GxPgss45yE
— Daniel Radosh (@danielradosh) September 29, 2016
What are your favorite Beverly Cleary books? I’m partial to Dear Mr. Henshaw, myself.
(image: By Unknown – Cleary Family archive/OPB, Public Domain)
- Check out this video on costumes and fashion in the science fiction genre. (via io9)
- Tara and Spike are here for a new Buffy the Vampire Slayer. (via Syfy Wire)
- because of COVID-19 delays, there won’t be any new emojis next year. *angry face*. (via Vulture)
- The First Cat of Kansas is in NO MOOD for your festivities:
- Here’s a review of Killing Eve season 3, which premieres tonight! (via Rolling Stone)
- RIP to British horror actor and producer Hilary Heath. (via AVClub)
- Happy Easter everyone, but mostly Danny Trejo!
Wishing a #HappyEaster to all my furry friends in Kansas! Except bunnies… they’re not my favorite. pic.twitter.com/m70dALzIiD
— Frances, First Cat of Kansas (@FirstCatofKS) April 12, 2020
Happy Easter, may your Friends and Family have a blessed day! pic.twitter.com/0wc6GT3o3z
— Danny Trejo (@officialDannyT) April 12, 2020
Hope you’re having a safe and candy-filled Easter, everyone!
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One of Stephen King’s earliest novels is coming to the big screen.
The Hollywood Reporter revealed that Annabelle Comes Home director Gary Dauberman will soon be helming a big-screen adaptation of Salem’s Lot. The epic vampire tale was one of King’s earliest success stories, and was his follow-up novel to his breakthrough hit Carrie in 1975. Dauberman will not only direct the film, but he’s writing the screenplay as well. He also wrote the screenplay for both chapters of the blockbuster It. Horror maestro James Wan is one of the film’s producers.
Warner Brothers
Salem’s Lot is essentially a modern retelling of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and centers on a on an author who returns to his hometown in Maine (King’s home state) to write about a creepy abandoned mansion that’s haunted him since childhood. Not long after arriving back home, he finds out that the mansion was bought by a mysterious and reclusive antiques dealer, who is a vampire master. After turning several of the locals into his vampire minions, the author and several other townsfolk join together to put an end to the undead infestation.
The novel was turned into a two-part mini-series in 1979, directed by The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s Tobe Hooper. It was big success, and re-aired on TV for years. It was later edited down into a shorter runtime and released on VHS, where it became a favorite rental choice among horror fans. The scene were a young boy sees his vampified friend float to his window in the middle of the night traumatized an entire generation, myself included.
The original mini-series made several changes to the book, most notably turning the talkative vampire master Kurt Barlow into more of a Nosferatu-style vampire, who doesn’t speak and is more animalistic and terrifying looking. Although this was very different from the novel, the mini-series Barlow was a horrifying and memorable creation.
A TNT mini-series that stuck closer to the book was produced in 2004, which featured Rutger Hauer as Barlow and Rob Lowe in the lead. This was another vampiric notch on the actor’s belt. Not only was he the physical inspiration for Anne Rice’s Lestat, but he played vamps in movies like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Argento’s Dracula, and Dracula III: Legacy. It remains to be seen if this new version of Barlow will stick closer to the ’70s mini-series or the 2004 one, or go off in a completely new direction.
One thing is for sure, though. This is one King adaptation we can’t wait to sink our fangs into.
Featured Image: Warner Brothers
The post Stephen King’s SALEM’S LOT Gets a Big-Screen Remake appeared first on Nerdist.