Naomi Leanage found out that TikTok’s Canadian offices were getting shut down from a social media post by one of its employees.
“I was honestly shocked and disappointed. I’ve been to the TikTok office in Toronto a few times. They host creators there all the time,” said the Toronto-raised, L.A.-based content creator.
“It’s not just this online platform that’s in the abyss, it’s real people who care about your career.”
The federal government recently ordered TikTok to shut down its corporate offices in Toronto and Vancouver, citing national security concerns. Canadian users will still be able to access and post on the app as normal.
Officials in countries including Canada and the U.S. have shared concerns that TikTok — owned by Beijing-based ByteDance — can be forced to share user data with the Chinese government, or be used for foreign interference.
TikTok has defended itself, saying it’s headquartered in Los Angeles and Singapore, where ByteDance has also moved…