TikTok CEO grilled by skeptical U.S. lawmakers over privacy concerns

ASHINGTON, Sept 21 (Reuters) - TikTok Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew faced tough questions from U.S. lawmakers on Thursday who expressed skepticism over the social media app's ability to protect American users' privacy.<br><br>Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn repeatedly pressed Chew over whether TikTok collects data on bra sizes, menstrual cycles and bank accounts. Chew said that while such data might be found on the app, it was not actively collected by the company.<br><br>Chew said TikTok was working on walling off U.S. user data from Beijing staff. But several lawmakers appeared unsatisfied with his answers.<br><br>TikTok has faced intense scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers, who worry Beijing could use the app to harvest data on Americans or advance Chinese interests.<br><br>Congress members expressed frustration with Chew's responses.<br><br>Republican Senator Ted Cruz asked if TikTok could assure users that Beijing would not obtain their data. Chew said: "No company can provide absolute assurance we won't be compromised."<br><br>Republican Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers told Chew that "this looks very much like a PR stunt" and that his testimony was "incomplete".