UK bans TikTok on government devices

Follows similar measures in US, EU and New Zealand

The government has banned Chinese-owned video sharing app TikTok from government devices, with immediate effect.

The ban will apply to work phones used by ministers and civil servants, but it will not extend to their personal phones.

"This is a proportionate move based on a specific risk with government devices," Cabinet office minister Oliver Dowden told MPs.

The ban comes after a review by British cybersecurity experts, which concluded that certain platforms - including TiKTok - could pose a risk while accessing and using sensitive government data.

The review was especially concerned with apps that can collect significant amounts of data on their users, including information about their contacts and location - data that can certainly be seen sensitive, especially on government devices.

"The security of sensitive government information must come first, so today we are banning this app on government devices. The use of other data-extracting apps will be kept under review," Dowden said.

"We're moving to a system where government devices will only be able to access third party apps that are on a pre-approved list."

The government will not discourage the general public from using TikTok. However, Dowden advised people to always review and take into account the data policies of any social media platform they intend to download and use.

The Cabinet Office explained that TikTok requires users grant permission for the app to access data stored on their device, which is subsequently collected and stored by owner ByteDance.

By granting such permissions, the company can access data including but not limited to contacts, user-generated content, and geolocation information.

Certain exceptions will be made for the use of TikTok on government devices when necessary for work-related purposes.

However, these will be granted solely on a case-by-case basis, subject to approval by security teams and with appropriate ministerial clearance.

Security measures will also be implemented to address any potential risks.

TikTok ban going global

US politicians have frequently voiced concerns that TikTok could send US user data to China, eventually ending up in the possession of the Beijing government.

Jake Moore, global cybersecurity advisor at ESET, called TikTok's reach "humongous" and warned it can be easily used to target potential customers.

"Businesses need to remember that the data on the platform is closely monitored and TikTok is potentially more likely to understand their customer's habits more than the businesses themselves," Moore added.

The government's decision to ban TikTok aligns the UK with the US government, the European Commission and New Zealand, all of which have imposed similar bans on the app (New Zealand's ban came in the last 24 hours) - signifying how rapidly Western trust in China has diminished in recent months.

Adam Marre, who previously worked for the FBI and now serves as the CISO at Arctic Wolf, said that while users should exercise caution using any social media platform, regardless of the owner, "TikTok is collecting massive amounts of information from consumers like user location, voiceprints, calendar information and other sensitive data.

"The issue is we don't know what this data is being used for, or if a foreign government has access to it. As the number of TikTok users continues to grow, it's good this is being addressed by the UK government."

TikTok has refuted any allegations that it provides users' data to the Chinese government.

Theo Bertram, TikTok's VP of government relations and public policy in Europe, told the BBC the company believes the UK ban was largely influenced by geopolitical factors, rather than any genuine security concerns.

"We asked to be judged not on the fears that people have, but on the facts," he said.

TikTok says it has begun efforts to establish a comprehensive plan aimed at safeguarding European user data.

The plan includes proposals such as storing UK user data in its European data centres and implementing third-party independent oversight to monitor its approach.

TikTok has admitted that UK personal data is sent overseas, including to China, to allow its global staff to perform certain crucial tasks.