From states to federal agencies, TikTok faces bans on government-issued devices
Governors and lawmakers in the United States are targeting TikTok because they believe the Chinese-owned company poses a cybersecurity threat.
A bill that would prohibit the wildly popular social media app from federally issued devices was unanimously approved by the Senate.
Additionally, the app should not be used on state-issued devices, according to several governors' orders to their agencies. This week, Alabama, Georgia, Idaho and Utah joined four different states — Maryland, South Dakota, South Carolina and Nebraska — in giving such boycotts.
After its launch in 2016, the video-sharing app, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, gained popularity
TikTok raises security concerns
However, the widespread use of it in the United States is alarming government officials. When he told lawmakers in November that the app could be used to control users' devices, FBI Director Christopher W R-A Y caused a stir.
A few states' governors have banned state employees from using the app on government-issued devices due to concerns about national security.
"Safeguarding Alabamians' more right than wrong to protection is an unquestionable requirement, and I clearly don't take a security danger from China gently," Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey tweeted in the wake of reporting an on TikTok for state organizations on Monday." That is the reason I have restricted the utilization of the TikTok application on our state gadgets and organization."
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox voiced the same concerns regarding data privacy after passing a measure that was comparable on the same day.
Our organization takes security dangers by China and China-based elements truly, "Cox said on Twitter". As a result, we are immediately removing TikTok from all state-owned devices.
Sen Josh Hawley, R-M O, has already banned the app from military-issued devices. TikTok is a major security risk to the United States, and until it is forced to sever ties with China completely, it has no place on government devices, according to a statement from the sponsor of the Senate bill that would prohibit the app from most devices used by federal agencies.
"Law enforcement activities, national security interests and activities, and security researchers" would be eligible for exemptions under the Senate-passed bill
Sen Rubio proposes a national ban on TikTok
Florida's Republican senator, Marco Rubio, is leading a bipartisan effort to completely ban TikTok. China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela are the "countries of concern" that the proposed legislation would "block and prohibit."
This kind of legislation's proponents and officials are concerned about how a social media company owned by another country could influence American politics.
Marc B-E R K man, CEO of the Organization for Social Media Safety, stated to NPR, "[TikTok] has the capability to collect massive amounts of data on our citizens." Since it's claimed by China, there is unquestionably the potential — and it's indistinct whether this is occurring at present — yet there's positively the continuous potential that that information is shared by the Chinese government.
B-E R K man stated that technology owned by a foreign nation could also "impact our elections through propaganda and misinformation"
Limiting a popular platform like TikTok faces challenges
However, B-E R K man acknowledges how difficult it would be to get users off of TikTok while legislators work to limit it. The app said last year that more than a billion people visit its website every month.
B-E R K man stated, "There are simply too many people on it." Additionally, there is a significant financial stake in retaining those users and the services.
TikTok did not respond to NPR's request for comment before it was published.
According to TikTok, the company does not adhere to the content moderation guidelines set forth by the Chinese government and stores user data in the United States. However, it acknowledged in July that non U S employees had access to U S user data
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