Why is TikTok dangerous?

But is there really a reason to worry?

The main concerns surrounding the app with an estimated 800 million users, about 60 percent of whom are between the ages of 16 and 24, are its ties to the Chinese government and the security and surveillance apprehensions that come with those ties.

"Companies in China have to hand over any information at any time to the Chinese government," Muneeb Ali, CEO of decentralized computing network and app ecosystem Blockstack, told FOX Business.

Chinese tech giant ByteDance launched TikTok on Apple devices in 2017 after the popular, U.S.-based, six-second video app Vine shut down in 2016 following its struggle to make money. Vine and YouTube users flocked to TikTok, and the app's popularity exploded between 2018 and 2019.