What does TikTok know about you?

Chinese social media site TikTok is harvesting large amounts of information on its 170 million American users, from their locations to the rhythm of their keystrokes, an analysis accepted by the Supreme Court has shown.

Newsweek sought email comment from TikTok on Monday.

Why It Matters

Knowledge of the information that TikTok is harvesting will help inform the debate about the social media site’s future. Congress has passed a law ordering TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell it. In response, the site has begun shutting down its U.S. operations at the weekend. President-elect Donald Trump has announced a plan to delay the implementation of the law, allowing the site to stay open.

What To Know

On Friday, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld Congress’ right to force TikTok’s sale, based on national security concerns.

The court noted that TikTok’s “data collection practices extend to age, phone number, precise location, internet address, device used, phone contacts, social network connections, the content of private messages sent through the application and videos watched.”

The judges also referenced a Draft National Security Agreement which noted that TikTok “collects user data, user content, behavioral data (including keystroke patterns and rhythms) and device and network data (including device contacts and calendars).”

“If, for example, a user allows TikTok access to the user’s phone contact list to connect with others on the platform, TikTok can access any data stored in the user’s contact list, including names, contact information, contact photos, job titles and notes,” the Supreme Court noted.

Its ruling states that the information TikTok harvests could be used to locate federal employees and blackmail them about some details of their private lives.

“Access to such detailed information about U.S. users, the Government worries, may enable ‘China to track the locations of Federal employees and contractors, build dossiers of personal information for blackmail, and conduct corporate espionage,'” the ruling states, drawing on a Justice Department submission.

In doing so, the court offered a valuable insight into the information that TikTok is gathering on its 170 million U.S. users—data that could be used by the Chinese government.

The court stressed that its written ruling is based on the Justice Department’s open evidence in court, and not on classified information that the federal government has presented in court.

While that classified information may have informed the decision, it is not discussed in the Supreme Court’s ruling.

What People Are Saying

On Sunday, President-elect Donald Trump revealed his plan to save TikTok after the app went dark on Saturday evening.

“I’m asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark! I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security.”

“The order will also confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order,” Trump, who takes office on Monday, wrote in a Truth Social post on Sunday morning.

TikTok told Newsweek on Sunday morning that it was restoring its U.S. operations after shutting it down for several hours.

“In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive,” it stated.

What Happens Next

TikTok’s future is far from certain. Trump will be inaugurated as President on Monday, which has allowed TikTok to stay in business in the U.S. Trump is seeking to work out a deal in which the federal government will own 50 per cent of the social media site.