Tiktok banned on government phones in the UK

In response to security concerns over the usage of Tiktok, the Chinese-owned social media video app will be blocked from UK government phones, Cabinet Office minister Oliver Dowden stated in the UK Parliament on Thursday.

Following the ban news, the UK now joins the US, Canada and the European Union (EU), who have also banned the Chinese-owned app from government devices, as well as nations like India, where the app is completely banned.

It may be pertinent to note that the app has previously denied sharing user data with the Chinese government, according to media reports.

“The security of sensitive government information must come first, so today we are banning this app on government devices. The use of other data-extracting apps will be kept under review,” stated Cabinet Office minister Oliver Dowden in a statement Thursday.

“Restricting the use of TikTok on government devices is a prudent and proportionate step following advice from our cyber security experts,” the Cabinet Office Minister added further.