US should be as concerned about Chinese government’s TikTok access as rival’s nuclear capability, whistleblower says

AMERICANS should be as concerned about the power social media apps like TikTok give the Chinese government as they are about their nuclear capabilities, whistleblower Ashley Yabon

has said. Yabon found himself a target of both China and Iran when he rang the alarm about Iran violating US sanctions while serving as general counsel for ZTE, one of the world's

largest telecom companies. 3Americans should be as concerned about TikTok, owned by a Chinese company, as they are about the rival nation's nuclear capabilities, according to

whistleblower Ashley YabonCredit: Getty 3This access to the information Americans store in their phones could potentially be as dangerous in modern warfare as a nuclear weapon,

Yabon explainedCredit: AFP 3TikTok and its parent company ByteDance have stressed that the Chinese government does not have any control or influence over the appCredit: Getty In an

exclusive interview with The U.S. Sun, Yabon said that as someone with experience with Chinese companies, he was immediately concerned when he realized how big TikTok had become in

the US. "Red flags went off because I know from my experience with China, especially with ZTE and Huawei," he said. "Both of those companies have what we call back doors, where

they can access information that you put on your phone." This access to the information Americans store in their phones could potentially be as dangerous in modern warfare as a

nuclear weapon, Yabon claimed. "They're gathering all this information, and they're having access to all this information. The concern is what are they gonna do with it?" he added.

Yabon told The U.S. Sun that while American and other western tech companies may also have access to users' private information, these companies are independent and not tied to the

US government. In comparison, Yabon pointed out, Chinese companies are subject to the ruling Chinese Communist Party, which means they could be weaponized in a conflict. "What

happens is there's no separation between country and companies. "China isn't the type that has the military presence and fights like the US does, or Russia does," Yabon said. "They

do it through telecommunication, through the use of information, and they're not gonna come in with some strong military. "That's not the way they operate. And we have to look at

it like that and realize that we can't look at it through our Western lens."  Yabon's comments are in line with what retired Air Force Brigadier General Robert Spalding

previously told The U.S. Sun. "TikTok in essence is a very powerful weapon - much more powerful than the V21 stealthy bomber," he claimed. "It's not only acting as almost a drug on