Security News

TikTok Takes Teen Accounts Private
2021-01-13 22:03

TikTok has decided to boost privacy measures for its underage users, the popular video-sharing social-media company announced. TikTok's popularity is being driven by teens - the company reported in 2019 about 60 percent of its 26.5 monthly users are between the ages of 16 and 24, and these latest measures are an attempt to make the platform safer for its youngest users, according to the company.

US Extends TikTok Sale Deadline to December 4
2020-11-27 12:32

The US Treasury on Wednesday said it had extended by seven days the November 27 deadline given to the Chinese owner of TikTok to sell the popular social media platform's American business. Trump, who lost his bid for re-election this month, has claimed that TikTok - which has some 100 million US users - can be used to collect data on Americans for Chinese espionage, a claim denied by the company.

TikTok Awards Nearly $4,000 for Account Takeover Vulnerabilities
2020-11-23 18:33

A researcher has earned nearly $4,000 from TikTok after discovering a couple of vulnerabilities that could have been chained to hijack accounts. Muhammed Taskiran, a 20-year-old researcher based in Germany, informed TikTok in late August that a URL parameter on tiktok.com was "Reflecting its value without being properly sanitized."

TikTok fixes bugs allowing account takeover with one click
2020-11-23 18:28

TikTok has addressed two vulnerabilities that could have allowed attackers to take over accounts with a single click when chained together for users who signed-up via third-party apps. German bug bounty hunter Muhammed Taskiran discovered a reflected cross-site scripting security bug - also known as a non-persistent XSS - in a TikTok URL parameter reflecting its value without proper sanitization.

Amazon Sues Instagram, TikTok Influencers Over Knockoff Scam
2020-11-13 19:05

Instagram and TikTok social-media influencers Kelly Fitzpatrick and Sabrina Kelly-Krejci are among 13 defendants in a lawsuit filed by Amazon, which alleges that they participated in an an online scam to sell counterfeit luxury goods. Counterfeit goods are strictly forbidden in the Amazon marketplace, but generic products - often called "Dupes" - are allowed.

Trump Administration Says Still Searching for TikTok Resolution
2020-11-12 15:29

President Donald Trump's administration said Wednesday it was still working to resolve its security concerns over Chinese-owned app TikTok after the firm sought to delay a deadline to sell its US operations. On Wednesday, the US Treasury Department said in a statement it "Remains focused on reaching a resolution of the national security risks arising from ByteDance's acquisition of Musical.ly."

TikTok Files Last-Minute Petition Against Trump Order
2020-11-11 18:27

TikTok asked a Washington court Tuesday to stop an order from US President Donald Trump's administration from taking effect this week as the White House seeks to ban the Chinese-owned app in the United States. In its court petition, TikTok asked for more time, saying it has not received enough feedback on its proposed solution.

US Judge Sets Up Fresh Roadblock in Trump Bid to Ban TikTok
2020-11-02 09:39

A US federal judge on Friday issued an injunction temporarily blocking an executive order by President Donald Trump aimed at banning TikTok, throwing up a legal roadblock ahead of a November 12 deadline. TikTok influencers suing the president over the ban convinced US District Court Wendy Beetlestone to issue the injunction against it.

US Insists on Need to Ban TikTok
2020-10-26 14:17

US President Donald Trump's administration has insisted on the need to ban TikTok due to national security concerns in a new court filing ahead of a plan to make the video app unavailable on November 12. In September, a temporary injunction prevented the government from removing TikTok from mobile application download platforms.

TikTok Launches Public Bug Bounty Program
2020-10-16 18:16

TikTok announced this week that it has launched a public bug bounty program in collaboration with HackerOne. It's not uncommon for security researchers to find vulnerabilities in the TikTok app.