TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew recently had his first appearance before Congress where lawmakers had been calling for a country-wide ban on the app.
The hearing which lasted for more than 5 hours produced some truly comical moments and proved how little the lawmakers understood about social media or the Internet as a whole.
Although the Singaporean had to endure a whole boat load of less intelligent questions from the committee, we’ve decided to compile the most ridiculous ones which have captured the attention of social media users.
WiFi connections
One of the most notable moments was when North Carolina Republican Rep. Richard Hudson appeared to be struggling to understand how WiFi works.
During the hearing, Hudson asked,”Mr, Chew, does TikTok access the home WiFi network?”
“Only if the user turns on the WiFi, I’m sorry, I may not understand the question,” Chew responded.
“So if I have the TikTok app on my phone and my phone is on my home WiFi network, does TikTok access that network?” Hudson asked.
“It would have to — to access the network to get connections to the internet, if that’s the question,” Chew added as he sounded a bit confused at the inherently confusing question.
“Is it possible, then, that it could access other devices on that home WiFi network?” Hudson prodded.
“Congressman, we do not do anything that is beyond any industry norms. I believe the answer to your question is no. It could be technical. Let me get back to you.”
Dilation of pupils
Another odd question was posed by Republican Georgia Rep. Buddy Carter who at one point during his questioning, appeared to become certain that TikTok was collecting users’ biometric data — in particular, how users’ eyes dilate while viewing a video and how this could affect one’s algorithm.
“Can you tell me right now, can you say with 100% certainty, that TikTok does not use the phone’s camera to determine whether the content that elicits a pupil dilation should be amplified by the algorithm? Can you tell me that?”
Chew responded by saying that the app does not collect body, face or voice data to identify users, and the only data TikTok collects is when a person uses filters, such as pretending to have sunglasses on their face.
“We need to know where your eyes are,” Chew explained.
“Why do you need to know where the eyes are, if you’re not seeing if they are dilated?” said Carter.
Wrong nationality
At one point, whilst the questions were centred on how the Chinese government have access to TikTok’s user data, Republican Dan Crenshaw said ByteDance and its employees who live in China must cooperate with the Chinese government when they are called upon, adding that “they are bound to secrecy and that would include you”.
The major issue is that Chew is not from China in the first place.
“Congressman, first, I’m Singaporean.”
Such questions and more have since gone viral on social media where netizens slammed the lawmakers for their silly questions.
You can watch the hearing in its entirety here.
Have we missed anything else? Let us know in the comments.
Also read: Memes That Perfectly Describe The Ridiculousness of a Post-GE15 PM-less Malaysia
