According to Reuters, the U.S. House of Representatives is banning TikTok from all computers and mobile devices it uses.
The app must be removed from all devices, according to the House Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), who reportedly sent an email to all lawmakers and staff, informing them that the app is dangerous “due to a number of security issues.”
Anyone found to have the app on their device will be contacted to ensure it is removed and that future downloads are prohibited.
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This is the latest development in the TikTok on government devices issue, following several moves by the US government.
Last week, a $1.7 trillion spending bill passed that included provisions that would ban the use of TikTok on executive branch devices.
After the bill passed, Catherine Szpindor ,the head of the administration, worked with the House Administration Committee to implement a similar policy for the House of Representatives.
This was followed by the unanimous approval by the Senate of Senator JoshHawley “No TikTok on Government Devices Act.” The installation and use of the TikTok app on employee- owned or -managed is prohibited in 19 states, according to Reuters.
When the overall bill was passed, TikTok spokeswoman Brooke Oberwettersaid the company was “disappointed that Congress moved to ban TikTok on government devices,” describing it as “a political gesture that will do nothing to advance national security interests.”
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Critics of TikTok in the US government have expressed concern that Chinese officials could use it as a tool to spy on the US.
FBI Director Chris Wray, in particular, described it as a “Trojan horse for the Chinese Communist Party,” and that the app has no place on government devices.
TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, has pledged to delete all US user data from its servers.
However, a recent revelation showed that ByteDance fired four employees for illegally obtaining data from various TikTok users in the US, including two journalists.
According to a report in the New York Times, the employees gained access to IP addresses and other data linked to two journalists in an attempt to find out who was leaking inside information to the press.
Source: engadget.com
