TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew was unsuccessful before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday.

He did not assume to skeptical congressmen that his hugely popular social media platform could insulate itself from Chinese government interference. He also failed to convince them that TikTok has done enough to address misinformation, protect children from harmful material, or remove content that violates its code of conduct. It didn’t help his case when Republican Representative Kat Cammack of Florida played a video with an animated gun that shoots into a post and threatens the committee and its chairman. The video had been on TikTok for 41 days and was removed during the hearing.

Chew’s company was criticized for more than five hours, a show of rare bipartisan consensus that something needs to be done about TikTok, but what exactly Congress or the Biden administration can or should do remains unclear.

It also became clear that while TikTok is currently the target of federal scrutiny, primarily due to growing concerns over China’s power and influence, concerns about user privacy, misinformation, and impact on children are not unique to TikTok.

Malicious practices are ingrained in the business models of social media platforms, including Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook and YouTube. An increasing number of state legislatures and lawsuits are trying to force companies to take more responsibility for building safer products. Congress, too, should exercise its regulatory authority more broadly to protect consumers, not just TikTok users.

Indeed, TikTok is similar to other social media apps that suck up personal data, wrote Ron Deibert, director of the Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto, who analyzed the TikTok app. He added that most social media apps are unacceptably invasive by design. treat users as raw materials for personal data surveillance and lack transparency about their data sharing practices, thus requiring comprehensive privacy legislation.

Despite years of debate, Congress has failed to pass a bill that would protect data privacy on the Internet. Lawmakers came close last year with the US data privacy and protection law, but there were questions about whether the law would override California’s strict privacy law, which would be a mistake. House members said Thursday they’re trying to pass the bill again this year, which is good, but they should catch up with California and not backtrack on the state’s progressive privacy protections.

The immediate question for federal lawmakers is how to address the national security concerns raised by TikTok’s ties to China. The app is made by Chinese internet technology company ByteDance. Federal agencies have sounded the alarm because Chinese law requires tech companies to give the government access to user data. There is also concern that with the reach of its platforms, TikTok has 150 million users, or nearly half of the US population, and its powerful algorithm could be used as a tool to spread propaganda or disinformation.

The Biden administration has threatened to ban TikTok unless the Chinese owners of the app sell their stakes.

Chew tried to demonstrate that TikTok is a private company independent of the Chinese government and could build a firewall to ensure there is no foreign interference. But his argument was undermined on Thursday by an announcement from China’s Commerce Ministry that it would oppose the forced sale. China considers technology a national security issue and has the right under Chinese law to block its export.

If no sale is on the table, the Biden administration has limited options. A full ban would raise significant technical and legal issues, including whether cutting an extremely common way of speaking would violate the First Amendment. What will the US do after TikTok? Close all popular Chinese or foreign apps?

Moreover, simply banning TikTok won’t solve the bigger problem. Regulations and policies that protect Americans’ online privacy and limit the potential for harm to users, young and old, are long overdue.