On security considerations, British government ministers have been barred from accessing the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok on their work phones and computers.
The administration is concerned that sensitive data stored on official phones may be accessed by the Chinese authorities.
Cabinet Minister Oliver Dowden stated that the prohibition was a “precautionary” measure that would take effect immediately.
TikTok has categorically denied allegations that it provides data to the Chinese government.
Theo Bertram, the app’s vice-president of government relations and public policy in Europe, told the BBC it believed the decision was based “more on geopolitics than anything else”.
The Chinese embassy in London claimed the action was motivated by politics “rather than facts” and would “undermine the confidence of the world community in the UK’s economic environment”.
Mr. Dowden said he would not advise the public against using TikTok, but they should always “examine each social media platform’s data policy before downloading and using them”.
Senior Legislators pressed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to follow the lead of the United States and the European Union in banning the video-sharing app on official government devices.
But, government departments – and individual ministers – have embraced TikTok as a means of reaching out to younger people.
The app’s popularity has skyrocketed in recent years, with 3.5 billion downloads globally.
Its success stems not only from how simple it is to produce short films with music and amusing filters but also from its algorithm, which is adept at serving up videos that are appealing to specific users.
It can do so because it collects a wealth of information on users, such as their age, location, device, and even typing rhythms, while cookies track their behavior elsewhere on the internet.
This is also done by US-based social media sites, but TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance has been accused of being controlled by Beijing.
TikTok was banned from official devices in the United States in December, and the European Commission followed suit last month. Canada, Belgium, and India have all adopted similar measures.
New Zealand likewise banned government devices on Friday.
China has accused the United States of promoting disinformation and repressing TikTok, amid rumors that the White House wants the company’s Chinese owners to relinquish their holdings.
TikTok says that it does not disclose data with the Chinese government, although Chinese intelligence rules require companies to assist the Communist Party when asked.
In China, Western social media apps such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are restricted.
