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US lawyer general Pam Bondi has told astatine slightest 10 tech companies, including Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google, that they person “incurred nary liability” for supporting TikTok contempt the national ban connected providing services to the fashionable video-sharing app, according to letters disclosed connected Thursday.
Under orders from President Donald Trump, Bondi has refused to enforce a instrumentality passed by Congress past twelvemonth that classifies TikTok arsenic a nationalist information hazard due to the fact that of its ties to China and bars companies from distributing the app to US consumers.
TikTok tin dodge the prohibition by reducing the ownership Chinese entities person successful its US operations, and Trump has described those negotiations arsenic ongoing. But law experts person questioned the legality of enforcement orders by Trump that hold enforcement of the prohibition arsenic those income talks resistance out.
Early this year, TikTok disappeared from the US app stores of Apple and Google aft the prohibition went into effect. But contempt the instrumentality inactive being connected the books, TikTok returned to the stores aft conscionable a 26-day hiatus. Several media outlets reported astatine the clip that Bondi had written to Apple and Google promising they would not look prosecution. But the letters had not been publically disclosed until Thursday.
Silicon Valley bundle engineer Tony Tan had sought the letters nether the Freedom of Information Act. The Department of Justice initially claimed it did not person records matching Tan’s request. He sued the department, which ended up releasing respective letters to him connected Thursday.
A Justice Department spokesperson did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.
The disclosures amusement the archetypal letters were dated January 30 and sent to 4 companies—Microsoft, Google, Apple, and contented transportation web supplier Fastly. “Google has committed nary usurpation of the Act and Google has incurred nary liability nether the Act during the Covered Period,” then-acting lawyer wide James McHenry wrote. “Google whitethorn proceed to supply services to TikTok arsenic contemplated by the Executive Order without violating the Act, and without incurring immoderate ineligible liability.”
Bondi took implicit arsenic lawyer wide successful aboriginal February, and days aboriginal Google and Apple separately wrote to her, according to the released documents. In responses dated February 11, Bondi wrote that “the Department of Justice is besides irrevocably relinquishing immoderate claims the United States mightiness person had against” the companies for violating the TikTok ban.
After Microsoft inquired, it besides received connected March 10 a missive “irrevocably relinquishing immoderate claims.” Similar connection was included successful letters dated March 10 to Amazon, information halfway institution Digital Realty, and compartment telephone work elephantine T-Mobile.
In aboriginal April, Trump extended the negotiating model for a TikTok merchantability and further delayed enforcement of the ban. That led to a circular of 10 letters connected April 5, including to contented transportation supplier Akamai, unreality vendor Oracle, and TV shaper LG. Among those letters, lone the ones to Apple and Google mentioned the “irrevocably relinquishing” vow. But 3 days later, Bondi sent a caller mentation to Microsoft including the language.
Microsoft and the different 9 companies didn’t instantly respond to requests for comment.
Tan, who obtained the letters, past period filed a lawsuit against Google genitor institution Alphabet accusing it of withholding accusation astir its determination to proceed distributing TikTok connected its Play store. (Google antecedently declined to remark to WIRED connected the suit.) He worries that the promises from Bondi are non-binding, and that Trump oregon a aboriginal president could extremity up prosecuting tech companies that are presently supporting TikTok. Google could look billions of dollars successful fines if recovered successful usurpation of the ban.
English (US) ·