EU Bans TikTok On Government Phones Amid Growing National Security Concerns

• Western lawmakers have expressed concern over TikTok’s cybersecurity threats in recent years.
• The EU is working with other authorities to ban apps from staff phones over cybersecurity concerns.
• Not only the U.S. Senate, but more than half of the states in the U.S. have also banned apps on government phones.

The European Commission has banned TikTok from staff phones over cybersecurity concerns, according to Reuters.

TikTok, which is owned by Chinese company ByteDance, has accused the EU of not consulting before taking action.

Caroline Greer, TikTok’s director of public policy and government, said, “So we’re really operating under the cloud. Lack of transparency and lack of due process. Frankly, this issue I would expect some involvement in the matter.” relationship, he told Reuters. The company did not respond to her Insider’s request for comment.

At a press conference on Thursday, the EU’s head of industry Thierry Breton said the decision was internal and did not need to provide a reason for it, according to Reuters.

According to Reuters, EU staff should also remove TikTok if personal devices access corporate services.

Western lawmakers and cybersecurity experts have become increasingly wary of the security threats TikTok could pose in recent years. Authorities fear China will collect users’ personal data through the app, a claim TikTok has repeatedly denied.

In the US, there has been some debate over whether to ban TikTok or implement stricter oversight.

More than half of US states have banned the use of TikTok on government devices, according to insiders. Additionally, the app is banned on government-owned devices of US Senate employees.