優化國家監控軟體
The popular video-sharing app TikTok may become a tool for intelligence gathering for the Chinese regime, a US think tank recently warned.
美國智庫最近警告，受歡迎的短片分享應用程式抖音（TikTok）可能成為為中國政權收集情報的工具。
intelligence(n.)情報regime(n.)政權;政府;政體
Claudia Biancotti, a cybersecurity expert and visiting fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE), recently published an article discussing how Chinese social media apps may pose national security threats to the West.
網路安全專家、皮特森國際經濟研究所的訪問學者碧安寇提日前發表文章討論中國社交應用程式可能為西方國家帶來國安威脅。
pose a threat (to sth.)對…構成威脅
Biancotti points out that as Chinese social media apps become increasingly popular overseas, the apps gather user data that can be “easily accessed and leveraged” by Beijing.
碧安寇提指出，隨著中國社交媒體應用程式在海外越來越受歡迎，北京可「輕鬆取得並利用」這些應用程式收集到的用戶數據。
access(v.)讀取(電腦資料)(n.)使用或看見某物的權利或機會leverage(n.)槓桿作用;影響力;借貸收購(v.)借貸收購、借助已有的⋯⋯實現新目標、使⋯⋯發揮最大作用
She warns that the authoritarian regime may use the data to perfect its surveillance software to recognize “Western faces” more accurately.
她警告，中國可能會使用這些數據來優化其監控軟體，以更準確地識別「西方面孔」。
authoritarian(adj.)獨裁的;專制的perfect(v.)使完美surveillance(n.)監控
TikTok currently enjoys immense popularity worldwide, with many users’ short videos garnering millions of views.
TikTok在全球廣受歡迎，許多用戶的短片累積了數百萬觀看次數。
immense(adj.)極大的、巨大的、無限的=tremendous
Tiktok’s Bejing-based parent company, ByteDance, said there are around 400 million users in China, 80 million in the US and 120 million in the rest of the world.
Tiktok總部位於北京的母公司ByteDance表示，中國大約有4億用戶，美國有8千萬用戶，世界其他地區則有1.2億用戶。
parent company母公司subsidiary(n.)子公司
Biancotti says although TikTok has a user-data privacy policy in place, the company could simply surrender user data to the Chinese authorities.
碧安寇提表示，雖然TikTok已制定用戶數據隱私政策，但該公司可能會輕易就將用戶數據交給中國當局，
in place就緒;準備妥當surrender(v.)投降、屈服、(被迫)交出、放棄
Under a national security law passed in 2015, domestic and foreign companies in China are required to hand over information that the government requests in the name of public safety or national security.
根據2015年通過的國家安全法，若中國政府以公共安全或國家安全的名義要求，不管是國內還是國外公司都必須提交政府要求的信息。
domestic(adj.)國內的request(v.)要求;請求in the name of~以…的名義
Biancotti cautions that Chinese social-media apps, including TikTok, could be turned into “powerful tools for espionage and manipulation of public opinion” by Beijing.
碧安寇提警告，包括抖音在內的中國社交媒體應用程式可能會被北京轉變成「間諜活動和操縱公眾輿論的有力工具」，
caution(v.)警告;告誡espionage(n.)間諜活動、間諜行為manipulation(n.)操縱manipulate(v.)操縱
“If widely adopted, such an app could become a Huawei-sized problem in terms of the access to the West potentially afforded to Chinese security services,” she states.
她說，若被廣泛採用，這樣的應用程式可能會構成如華為般嚴重的威脅，為中國國安機構提供西方數據。
adopt(v.)採用;採納access to~取得…的管道或機會access(v.)讀取(電腦資料)(n.)使用或看見某物的權利或機會afford(v.)負擔得起;(機會、設施)提供(=provide=supply)