JAKARTA - The British government announced it would ban the TikTok application on official government phones immediately. This move follows other Western countries banning video applications belonging to Chinese company ByteDance for security reasons.
TikTok is getting more and more attention due to concerns that user data from the app could fall into the hands of the Chinese government, which could threaten Western security interests.
"Prelimining the security of sensitive information, the government should be a top priority, so today we ban this application on government devices. The use of other applications that extract data will continue to be reviewed," said UK Cabinet Office Minister (Secretary) Oliver Dowden, in a statement quoted by Reuters on Thursday, March 16 afternoon.
The UK government has asked the National Cyber Security Center to review potential government data vulnerabilities from social media applications and risks related to how sensitive information can be accessed and used.
Previously, governments of the United States, Canada, Belgium and the European Commission had also banned the application from official devices.
"Restricting the use of TikTok on government officials is a wise and proportional step after receiving advice from our cybersecurity experts," said Dowden.
TikTok said it was disappointed with the decision and had started taking steps to better protect European user data.
"We believe that this ban is based on a fundamental misunderstanding and is fueled by broader geopolitics, where TikTok, and millions of our users in the UK, are not playing a role at all," said a TikTok spokesperson.
Meanwhile, the Chinese government said the decision was based on political considerations rather than facts.
"This move disrupts the company's relevant normal operations in Britain and will ultimately only harm Britain's own interests", the Chinese embassy in London said in a statement.
Dowden told parliament that government officials will only be able to access third-party applications from previously approved lists.
"The TikTok ban does not include personal devices for government or ministerial employees and there will be limited exceptions where TikTok is needed on government devices for work purposes," he added.
The UK government and ministerial departments are increasingly using TikTok and other platforms to communicate with voters.
UK Energy Minister Grant Shapps said bans on government devices were a wise move, but he would still use the platform on his personal phones.
He posted a clip of the film "The Wolf of Wall Street" in which the character played by Leonardo DiCaprio said "I won't go" and "The show goes on".
Britain's Ministry of Defense posted a video on the platform shortly before the ban was announced showing how British troops trained Ukrainian troops to use Challenger 2 combat tanks.
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