Ban TikTok 30 Days US Gives Federal Agencies

 

Ban TikTok 30 Days US Gives Federal Agencies 

The White House has given all federal agencies 30 days to remove TikTok from the equipment they have been granted by the government.

Shalanda Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, instructed federal agencies to "delete and block installs" of the social media app controlled by China and to "prohibit internet traffic" from government-owned devices to the app.

Chris DeRusha, the federal government's top information security official, said:

The Administration's continuous dedication to safeguarding our digital infrastructure and preserving the security and privacy of American citizens is reflected in this advisory.

Congress imposed the deadline after voting in December to prohibit federal employees from using the app because of alleged threats to national security, which ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok, denies.

The action follows the issuance of identical orders by more than 50 US states, the European Commission, Taiwan, and most recently, Canada.

China responded to the action by claiming that the US was abusing state authority and expanding the definition of national security in order to repress foreign corporations.

At a routine press conference, Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, stated, "We firmly reject their incorrect activities."

ACLU Warns Against Banning TikTok

A bill that would grant President Joe Biden new authority to outlaw TikTok for all citizens is scheduled for a vote by the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday. More than 100 million Americans use the app.

TikTok "allows [China] to manipulate and monitor its users while it gobbles up Americans' data to be exploited for its malicious activities," according to Representative Michael McCaul, leader of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

On Monday, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) issued a statement opposing any attempt to outright ban TikTok.

In a statement, Jenna Leventoff, senior policy counsel for the ACLU, said that Congress "must not ban entire platforms and deprive Citizens of their fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression."

We have a right to use TikTok and other platforms to communicate with others across the nation and around the world.

Canada Also Bans TikTok

Canada is the most recent country to outlaw TikTok on all official devices, and the ban will take effect on Tuesday.

According to the government on Monday, Canada's top information officer "decided that it provides an unacceptable level of danger to privacy and security."

Because it was made "without stating any specific security concern or contacting us with concerns," TikTok called this decision "strange."