Following a similar decision by the US, Canada, Belgium and the European Commission, the UK has also banned TikTok from government devices due to security concerns. The ban takes effect immediately.
Here’s what Cabinet Secretary Oliver Dowden has to say about it.
The security of sensitive government information must come first, so today we’re banning this app on government devices. Use of other data mining apps will be monitored.
Dowden’s statement suggests other apps are also under review, and TikTok is just the beginning. Officials will now be able to install third-party apps on government devices
The app is known to mine user data outside the app itself which is the source of angles for many western nations. Of course, the ban only affects government devices used to work with sensitive information, but government employees are free to install TikTok on their personal smartphones.
A TikTok spokesperson said the company would try to work out a solution with the government because it believes the ban stems from a “fundamental misunderstanding” and is “driven by a wider geopolitics, where TikTok and UK users don’t have no role”.
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