Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

TikTok banned from UK government phones

TikTok banned from UK government phones

Oliver Dowden has announced that TikTok is banned from government devices, following in the footsteps of the EU Commission and several US administrations - amid growing concerns around the Chinese-owned video app.
TikTok has been banned from UK government phones amid security concerns around the Chinese-owned video app, Cabinet Office minister Oliver Dowden has announced.

In a statement to parliament, Mr Dowden said there "could" be a risk to how government data and information is used by the app.

He said that while TikTok use is "limited", banning it is good cyber "hygiene" - and brings the UK in line with the US, Canada and the EU.

Labour said Mr Dowden was "closing the stable door after the horse has bolted" by delaying bringing in the ban.

The video-sharing app has been under increasing scrutiny over its security and data privacy, with concerns it could be used to promote pro-Beijing views or gather user data - something TikTok strongly denies.

The EU Commission and more than half of US states and Congress have already introduced a ban over concerns around potential cyber attacks.

Mr Dowden stressed the government was not advising people against using TikTok in a personal capacity.

He told MPs: "This ban applies to government corporate devices within ministerial and non-ministerial departments, but it will not extend to personal devices for government employees or ministers or the general public.

"That is because, as I have outlined, this is a proportionate move based on a specific risk with government devices."

The cabinet office said the move was being taken because TikTok users are required to hand over data including contacts, user content and geolocation data.

Mr Dowden said the ban took "immediate effect" on Thursday.

He said there will be "limited exemptions" on some government devices made on a "case by case basis" where the app is required for work purposes.

TikTok: Ban 'driven by geopolitics'

TikTok, owned by Chinese internet company ByteDance, said it was "disappointed with this decision".

A spokesperson said: "We believe these bans have been based on fundamental misconceptions and driven by wider geopolitics, in which TikTok, and our millions of users in the UK, play no part.

"We remain committed to working with the government to address any concerns but should be judged on facts and treated equally to our competitors.

"We have begun implementing a comprehensive plan to further protect our European user data, which includes storing UK user data in our European data centres and tightening data access controls, including third-party independent oversight of our approach."

The ban will also likely anger Beijing, which has accused the US of spreading disinformation and suppressing TikTok amid reports the White House is calling for its Chinese owners to sell their stakes.

Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner backed the move but said "once again the government is late to the game".

She told the Commons: "In August last year parliament closed its TikTok account and, as the minister just said, in December the US banned TikTok from official devices, and nearly a month ago the European Commission followed suit.

"But on 28 February, the Secretary of State for Science and Innovation said the app was a matter of personal choice. She said that we have no evidence and a ban would be very forthright.

"So what's changed? Two weeks, two ministers, two completely different policies later, and it is the same pattern over and over again, a government behind the curve with sticking plaster solutions forced to lurch into a U-turn at the last minute."

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has previously hinted at banning TikTok, saying the UK will "look at what our allies are doing".

Earlier this week, security minister Tom Tugendhat told Sky News he had asked the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) to look into the app as it was "absolutely essential" to keep the UK's "diplomatic processes free and safe".

TikTok has long said it does not share data with China but Chinese intelligence legislation requires firms to help the Communist Party when requested.

Critics fear the policy could expose western data to Beijing.

The UK's parliament shut down its own account last year after MPs raised concerns about the firm's links to China.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Unelected PM of the UK holds an emergency meeting because a candidate got voted in… which he says is a threat to democracy…
Farmers break through police barriers in Brussels.
Ukraine Arrests Father-Son Duo In Lockbit Cybercrime Bust
US Offers $15 Million For Info On Leaders Of Cybercrime Group Lockbit
Apple warns against drying iPhones with rice
Alexei Navalny: UK sanctions Russian prison chiefs after activist's death
German economy is in 'troubled waters' - ministry
In a recent High Court hearing, the U.S. argued that Julian Assange endangered lives by releasing classified information.
Tucker Carlson says Boris Johnson wants "a million dollars, in Bitcoin or cash, from Tucker Carlson to talk about Ukraine.
Russia is rebuilding capacity to destabilize European countries, new UK report warns
EU Commission wants anti-drone defenses at Brussels HQ
Von der Leyen’s 2nd-term pitch: More military might, less climate talk
EU Investigates TikTok for Child Safety Concerns
EU Launches Probe Into TikTok Over Child Protection Under Digital Content Law
EU and UK Announce Joint Effort on Migration
Ministers Confirm Proposal to Prohibit Mobile Phone Usage in English Schools
Avdiivka - Symbol Of Ukrainian Resistance Now In Control Of Russian Troops
"Historic Step": Zelensky Signs Security Pact With Germany
"Historic Step": Zelensky Signs Security Pact With Germany
Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny has died at the Arctic prison colony
Tucker Carlson grocery shopping in Russia. This is so interesting.
France and Germany Struggle to Align on European Defense Strategy
‘A lot higher than we expected’: Russian arms production worries Europe’s war planners
Greece Legalizes Same-Sex Marriage and Adoption Rights
Russia "Very Close" To Creating Cancer Vaccines, Says Vladimir Putin
Hungarian Foreign Minister: Europeans will lose Europe, the Union's policy must change drastically
Microsoft says it caught hackers from China, Russia and Iran using its AI tools
US Rejects Putin's Ceasefire Offer in Ukraine
The Dangers of Wildfire Smoke and Self-Protection Strategies
A Londoner has been arrested for expressing his Christian beliefs.
Chinese Women Favor AI Boyfriends Over Humans
Greece must address role in migrant vessel disaster that killed 600: Amnesty
Google pledges 25 million euros to boost AI skills in Europe
Hungarian President Katalin Novák Steps Down Amid Pardon Controversy
Activist crashes Hillary Clinton's speech, calls her a 'war criminal.'
In El Salvador, the 'Trump of Latin America' stuns the world with a speech slamming woke policing after winning a landslide election
Trudeau reacts to Putin's mention of Canadian Parliament applauding a former Ukrainian Nazi in his interview with Tucker Carlson.
The Spanish police blocked the farmers protest. So the farmers went out and moved the police car out of the way.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy fires top Ukraine army commander
Tucker Carlson's interview with Vladimir Putin raises EU concerns
Finnish Airline, Finnair, is voluntarily weighing passengers to better estimate flight cargo weight
Russia's Economy Expands by 3.6% Due to Increased Military Spending
Ukraine MPs Vote To Permit Use Of Dead Soldiers' Sperm
German Princess Becomes First Aristocrat To Pose Naked On Playboy Cover
UK’s King Charles III diagnosed with cancer
EU's Ursula von der Leyen Confronts Farmer Protests Amid Land Policy Debates
Distinguishing Between Harmful AI Media and Positive AI-Generated Content: A Crucial Challenge for the EU
Tucker Carlson explains why he interviewed Putin
Dutch farmers are still protesting in the Netherlands against the government, following the World Economic Forum's call for 'owning nothing.'
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stands up for European farmers and says, 'Brussels is suffocating European farmers.
×