TIcTok, the video-sharing app, has admitted that certain employees in China have access to the personal data of US users. This is of particular concern given its owned by China’s ByteDance Ltd., and that data could find its way into the hands of the Chinese government.

The company made the admission when responding by letter to nine US Senators probing the data-sharing of the company, with an eye to national security implications. The Senators had asked Tiktok if Chinese employees can access US user’s data, what role the employees play in shaping the app’s algorithm, and what information TikTok had access to, was shared with the Chinese government, if any.

TikTok admitted that certain US user information is available to Chinese employees, including public videos and comments, but that any Chinese employee would need to clear a number of internal security reviews. But TikTok claimed none of that data is shared with the Chinese government, and it is subject to “robust cybersecurity controls.”

TikTok noted as part of a new initiative called Project Texas, it is making a number of concessions to the US government and its security concerns. It noted it is working with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the US to strengthen data security, especially around anything the Committee defines as “protected.” As part of that project, it is storing US information on physical servers owned by computer giant Oracle, and moving its platform to Oracle’s cloud infrastructure. That way US users will be using a platform deployed on domestic infrastructure.

Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee said, “TikTok’s response confirms our fears about the CCP’s influence in the company were well founded. The Chinese-run company should have come clean from the start, but it attempted to shroud its work in secrecy. Americans need to know if they are on TikTok, Communist China has their information.”

In a June 27th letter, several Republican Senators had issued a statement, noting a Buzzfeed News piece which said TikTok data on US users was being accessed by Chinese engineers. They went on to say, TikTok and its parent “are using their access to a treasure trove of US consumer data to surveil Americans.”