China using technology to do "exact same thing Hitler was doing": cybersecurity expert

1 August 2020, 15:33 | Updated: 1 August 2020, 15:53

Cyber security expert warns of Chinese cyber warfare and TikTok

After Donald Trump hinted at banning TikTok in the US, this cybersecurity expert warned that Chinese technology is being used to track people in the West.

US President Donald Trump suggested that he might ban Chinese app TikTok from the American market this weekend, which many felt could be over security concerns.

Maajid Nawaz was joined by Morgan Wright, the Chief Security Adviser at SentinelOne and cybersecurity and cyberterrorism expert to discuss the news.

"Anything that comes out of China, I actually don't trust it at all," the expert began, stating that the President's move could be wise.

He went on to tell Maajid that every year China is responsible for the theft of over $600 billion worth of technology from the US and TikTok is an app which raises the same concerns as any other software discovered by intelligence services.

"Anybody who's in conflict with the Chinese Communist Party, anybody who disagrees with them is a target," Mr Wright warned and TikTok potentially provides Chinese services with information on people outside of the state which could threaten western democracy.

Maajid Nawaz explains the potential abuse of technology by China

Maajid Nawaz brought the question of the cyber threat of China back to the plight of the Uighur people, which he has been vocal on.

He asked Mr Wright if "we could be witnessing the most technologically sophisticated genocide happening right now to the Uighur people."

"They're using technology to do what Hitler was doing back in the day," the cyber security expert said. "Instead of rounding people up by where they live and how they look, they're now doing it through technology," and the west must be aware of this threat, Mr Wright said.