New York City Bans The Use Of TikTok On Government Devices, For Security Reasons

New York Mayor Eric Adams issued a ban on TikTok on government-owned tools. (photo: twitter @danarubinstein)

JAKARTA - On Wednesday, August 16, New York City banned the use of TikTok on government officials, citing security concerns. They joined a number of US cities and states that imposed such restrictions on the short video sharing app.

TikTok, which is used by more than 150 million Americans and owned by Chinese technology company ByteDance, has faced growing pressure from US legislative members to ban it nationally due to concerns about the influence of the Chinese government.

"TikTok poses a security threat to the city's technical network," said a statement from New York Mayor Eric Adams' administration.

Agencys in New York City are required to remove the app within 30 days and employees will lose access to their apps and websites on the city's devices and networks. The state of New York had previously banned TikTok from mobile devices issued by the state.

TikTok stated that they "have never shared US user data with the Chinese government, and will not," and they have taken major action to protect the privacy and security of TikTok users.

The most senior US security officials, including the FBI Director Christopher Wray, and CIA Director William Burns, have said that TikTok is a threat. Wray said in March that the Chinese government could use TikTok to control software on millions of devices and influence narratives to divide American citizens, adding that the app "images" national security concerns.

Former US President Donald Trump in 2020 sought to ban TikTok's new downloads, but a series of court decisions stopped the ban.

Many US states and cities have restricted the use of TikTok on government officials. Recently, Montana passed a law banning the app across states, a rule that will take effect on January 1 and is currently in the process of legal challenge.

Nearly half of American adults support the ban on TikTok, according to a newly released Reuters/Ipsos survey last Wednesday.