Trump Issues EO to Ban Transactions, Control Data Exports Related to Certain Chinese Apps
President Donald Trump issued an executive order Jan. 5 to ban certain transactions with Chinese apps Alipay, CamScanner, QQ Wallet, SHAREit, Tencent QQ, VMate, WeChat Pay and WPS Office. The restrictions, effective 45 days after the order was issued, will block transactions between any person or company subject to U.S. jurisdiction with people or companies that “develop or control” the apps. It also directs the Commerce Department to recommend measures to prevent exports of U.S. user data to “foreign adversaries” and to establish a licensing regime for those data exports.
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The restrictions are a response to China’s civil-military fusion strategy, National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien said, and will create a “program to control the export of exploitable United States user data.” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said he directed the agency to begin implementing the order. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the U.S. is “bullying foreign companies” and has “no evidence at all” to support the restrictions. “The Chinese side will continue taking necessary measures to safeguard Chinese companies' legitimate rights and interests,” the spokesperson said Jan. 6, according to a transcript of a regular press conference the Foreign Ministry hosted.
The U.S. announcement comes several months after a similar order targeting TikTok and WeChat (see 2008070024). A U.S. federal court blocked those restrictions from being implemented (see 2009280012).