Now, that reputation may be taking a hit.

Digital rights groups and others around the world have taken note and raised questions about how the move against TikTok conflicts with U.S. support for an open internet.

Russian opposition bloggerAlexander GorbunovPosting on social media last month, Russia could use the move to shut down services such as YouTube. Digital rights advocates around the world are concernedThe US move would provide an excuse for authoritarians who want to censor the internet, triggering a chain reaction.

In March this year, the Chinese government, which controls the country’s internet, cited the TikTok legislation, saying that the United States “says one thing and does another.”

Digital rights advocates say the U.S. targeting of TikTok, a social media platform with 170 million U.S. users where many share dance moves, voice political opinions and sell merchandise, could undermine decades of efforts to promote an open and free internet governed by international organizations rather than individual countries. The internet has fragmented in recent years as authoritarian governments in China and Russia have increasingly infringed on their citizens’ internet access rights.

“This will weaken the United States’ position in promoting internet freedom,” said Juan Carlos Lara, director general of Derechos Digitales, a Latin American digital rights group based in Chile. “It will do absolutely nothing to enhance the United States’ ability to promote a free, secure, stable and interoperable internet.”

Now, amid concerns that TikTok could send data to the Chinese government or become a propaganda conduit for Beijing, legislation passed by the House last month requires ByteDance to sell TikTok to a buyer that satisfies the U.S. government within six months. If the company can’t find a buyer, app stores must stop offering the app for download, and web hosting companies can’t host TikTok. (It’s unclear whether the specific measures that might come with the aid package will include changes to the deadline or other aspects of the bill.)

The bill, passed by the House of Representatives in March and now under consideration in the Senate, has sparked anxiety around the world.

Gorbunov, who goes by the online handle Stalin_Gulag, wrote on the social media service Telegram in March that a ban on TikTok could lead to further censorship in Russia.

“I don’t think it’s so obvious that it needs to be said out loud, which is that when Russia blocks YouTube, they use this American decision to justify themselves,” Gorbunov said.

“It gives them every reason to be confident in their past actions and it gives them the courage to take similar actions in the future,” she said in an interview.

Lara of the digital rights group noted that countries such as Venezuela and Nicaragua have passed laws giving governments more control over online content. He said increasing government control over the internet is a “seductive idea” and “a real possibility if you see something like this in places like the United States.”

Digital rights experts say forcing a sale or ban of TikTok would also make it harder for the U.S. government to demand that other countries accept an internet governed by an international organization.

China, in particular, has built a system of internet censorship that believes individual countries should have greater power to set the rules online. Beijing has blocked access to products from several U.S. tech giants, including Google’s search engine, as well as Facebook and Instagram.

Other countries have followed Beijing’s lead. Russia has blocked online content. India and Turkey have taken measures that allow them to ask social media to remove posts.

Patrick Toomey, deputy director of the National Security Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, said that if the measures against TikTok become law, “hypocrisy will be inevitable and will provide huge benefits to China.” The union has been one of the most prominent groups opposing legislation on TikTok.

Peter Harrell, who served as senior director for international economics and competitiveness at the National Security Council in the Biden administration, said any U.S. ban or sale of TikTok would require officials to explain how the measure differs from actions by other countries to restrict the flow of digital data within their borders. The United States has long advocated that data should flow unimpeded between countries.

“I support taking action on TikTok, but we’re going to have to work hard to make up on the diplomatic front,” Harrell said.

Still, other supporters of the bill rejected the argument that action against TikTok would undermine U.S. internet policy.

An aide to the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, who was not authorized to discuss the legislation publicly, said the measure would be a benefit to internet freedom by reducing the risk of Chinese influence over TikTok.

A National Security Council spokesman said in a statement that the United States “remains committed to an open internet.”

“This commitment does not conflict with our responsibility to protect national security by preventing certain adversaries from threatening Americans’ personal information and manipulating Americans’ speech,” the spokesman added.