OTTAWA — A TikTok executive is facing off with Canadian lawmakers who have concerns that data from the app could end up in the hands of the Chinese government. 

Steve de Eyre, director of public policy and government affairs for TikTok Canada, said at a House of Commons committee meeting that the video-sharing app is not controlled by the Chinese government.

Western governments have expressed worries that the popular platform owned by Beijing-based ByteDance could put sensitive data in the hands of China’s government or be used as a tool to further misinformation.

Chinese law says the government can order companies to help it gather intelligence. 

The federal government banned TikTok from government-owned devices in February, and provinces followed suit.

Federal and provincial privacy watchdogs have also been investigating whether TikTok complies with privacy law. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 18, 2023. 

— With files from The Associated Press. 

The Canadian Press