The US states that have outlawed TikTok entirely or in part for official use due to growing security concerns.
The US states that have outlawed TikTok entirely or in part for official use due to growing security concerns.
The U.S. House of Representatives has called all of its team and selected officers to extract TikTok from mobile devices that were given by the situation due to “safety hazards” with the famous video-sharing app.
The House’s chief administrative officer, Catherine Szpindor, issued the order to remove the app after her office had already warned in August that it constituted a “high risk to users” due to “several security vulnerabilities” and other reasons.
As a consequence of concerns that data group could be used by the Chinese government to spy on Americans or that the app’s algorithm could edit what users watch on the app, U.S. state states have made several tries to extract TikTok, created by Chinese tech giant ByteDance.
The 19 states had at least partially prohibited the app from state-managed tools last week due to concerns that the Chinese government would use it to track Americans and restrict material.
These states include Texas, Georgia, Maryland, South Dakota, South Carolina, and Texas. Because the software discloses personal information to “unwanted actors,” the U.S. military forbade its service members from using TikTok on official equipment.
The $1.66 trillion federal omnibus funding plan enacted last week included an important go into effect if President Joe Biden signs the bill into law.
Following at least 25 other states that have earlier published of a condition on the usage of the app on devices, North Carolina and Wisconsin are the most recent US states to impose a ban on TikTok on government-owned devices due to growing security concerns.
The rule was motivated by concerns that TikTok, a Chinese internet company owned by Bytedance, might be used to collect user data and information and give it to the Chinese Communist Party. Some states, including Texas and Ohio, cited China’s 2017 National Intelligence Law as requiring businesses with regional registration to participate in the intelligence community, such as sharing user data with the government.
Weibo, WeChat, Alibaba, and Huawei Technologies are just a few of the Chinese-owned apps and platforms that many states have added to their list of banned entities.
In December, FBI Director Chris Wray gave a sign about the potential for espionage on TikTok. China can “manipulate content and, if they so want, utilise it for influence operations,” according to Wray. “All of these things are under the indicators of a government that doesn’t communicate our values and that has a mission that is very much at chances with what is best for the United States,” Wray ended. That is a problem for us.
Then, in response to rising concerns that the software would be used to eavesdrop on American users, President Joe Biden signed a bill prohibiting federal employees from using TikTok on official devices in December.
As public knowledge of security risks grew, several jurisdictions started to outlaw the app. The 27 states that have outlawed using TikTok on government property are listed below.
Florida
Jimmy Patronis, Florida’s chief financial officer, issued an order in August 2020 that prohibited TikTok use on department-owned devices. This mandate was taken out by the Florida Department of Financial Services.
At the time, Patronis issued a statement to the press saying, “I have decided to immediately ban the programme from DFS devices and use of the app within our premises. The threat TikTok delivers far outweighs any use the application could provide to the official action of the agency.
Nebraska
Nebraska was next to announce a TikTok ban on state-owned devices in August 2020. According to former governor Pete Ricketts, TikTok is legally needed to transfer user data to the communist government of China upon demand because it is an app owned by a Chinese corporation.
We have decided to block TikTok on state-owned devices to protect the security of data that belongs to the state of Nebraska and to prevent the invasive cyber-activities of China’s communist government.
Southern Dakota
On November 29, 2022, Kristi Noem, the governor of South Dakota, issued an executive order prohibiting the use of the app by state workers when using official equipment. According to a press release from Noem, “South Dakota will not participate in the information display efforts of countries who detest us.”
She continued, “The Chinese Communist Party uses the data it collects from TikTok to brainwash the American people, and they collect data from the devices that use the platform. The state’s Department of Administration received a memo from South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster in December asking for a ban on TikTok on all state-owned devices.
The health, safety, and well-being of our citizens and businesses rely on protecting our State’s vital cyber infrastructure from external and internal threats, according to McMaster’s memo. A rising bipartisan coalition in Congress is trying to outlaw access to TikTok in the United States after federal law enforcement and national security officers warned that the app poses a clear and present risk to its users.
Maryland
An order to prohibit vendors and products that pose an “unacceptable level of cybersecurity risk to the state,” such as “cyber-espionage” or “surveillance of government entities,” was made public by the Office of Security Management in Maryland. The order was signed by Chip Stewart, the state’s chief information security officer.
In a press statement, Stewart stated that “this action constitutes a critical step in defending Maryland state systems from the cybersecurity dangers presented by foreign groups.”
Indiana
According to Reuters, Indiana’s Attorney General Todd Rokita filed a lawsuit against TikTok on December 8 alleging that the company misled consumers about China’s access to user data and exposed youngsters to explicit content.
The same day, TikTok was restricted on government-owned devices by Indiana’s Office of Technology.
Texas
Greg Abbot, the governor of Texas, issued an order to state agency heads on December 7 banning the use of the video-sharing website on state-owned equipment. The letter from Abbot argued that TikTok “harvests massive amounts of data from its customers’ devices, including when, where, and how they conduct the online training,” and then provides this treasure mine of potentially sensitive information to the Chinese leaders.
On December 8, Governor Ken Stitt of Oklahoma signed an executive order prohibiting TikTok. In a news release, Stitt stated, “maintaining the cybersecurity of state government is critical to continue serving and protecting Oklahoma citizens and we will not engage in aiding the Chinese Communist Party to get access to government information.”
Utah
On December 12, Utah Governor Spencer Cox made an executive order that forbade TikTok from being used on state-owned devices and forbade state employees from keeping imprinted accounts on the app. In a news release, Cox stated that “China’s access to TikTok data group creates a threat to our cybersecurity.”
Therefore deleted our TikTok performance and ordered the same for all state-owned devices. We need to protect Utahns and ensure that the form of security measures are reliable in the eyes of the populace.
Alabama
On December 12, Governor Kay Ivey of Alabama addressed a memo to the leaders of state agents outlawing TikTok on government equipment and networks.
Installing Tiktok on state-owned devices “creates an unacceptable vulnerability to Chinese infiltration activities,” Ivey warned.
Iowa
The TikTok app will no longer be available on state-owned smartphones, per a directive from Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds to the state’s Department of Management office. In a news release, Reynolds stated, “I refuse to expose the population of Iowa to this risk. It is evident that TikTok represents a national security risk to our country.”
North Dakota
Doug Burgum, the governor of North Dakota, issued an executive order on December 13 banning TikTok from state-owned devices in the state.
According to a news release from Burgum, “safeguarding people’s data is our main problem” and “TikTok grows several banners about the quantity of data it manages and how that details may be traded with and manipulated by the Chinese government.”
Idaho
Brad Little, the governor of Idaho, issued an executive order on December 14 prohibiting the use of the programme on state-owned smartphones by state employees. Little stated in a press release that “the communist Chinese government can use TikTok to gather crucial information from our state and federal government.
We are taking this action to defend Americans and residents of Idaho from the evil plans of a foreign government that does not uphold our principles and aims to undermine and influence our nation. “This new ban on removing TikTok from state-issued devices and networks will help preserve Idahoans’ data as well as national security,” the statement reads.
New Hampshire
On December 14, TikTok, Huawei Technologies, Tencent, and Alibaba were among the Chinese companies and apps that the governor of New Hampshire, Chris Sununu, prohibited by executive order. “New Hampshire is joining the increasing list of states that have prohibited TikTok and other Chinese firms from state government devices and networks,” Sununu stated in a press statement. The inhabitants of New Hampshire’s safety, security, and privacy will be preserved due to this action.
Georgia
The Russian-owned Telegram and Chinese-owned TikTok were among the apps that Georgia Governor Brian Kemp ordered state agency heads to stop using in a memo to agency chiefs. “The State of Georgia must prohibit any effort by foreign enemies such as the CCP to access and fell its secure data and sensitive information,” claims Kemp. The United States national security is continuously threatened by the CCP.
On December 16, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin issued an executive order barring WeChat, TikTok, and any Bytedance or Tencent-developed apps from being used on government-owned devices.
Youngkin wrote in the memo that “sensitive information housed on state government servers, such as tax information or health records, is evidence that data security and cybersecurity are becoming significant parts of state governance.”
The government that governs TikTok, as stated by the governor of Montana, Greg Gianforte, “doesn’t share our deals and that has an objective that’s a great deal probability with what’s in the best interests of the United States,” according to a memo from the FBI director to Montana’s chief information officer, Kevin Gilbertson.
Washington, D.C.
On December 19, State Senator Ryan Weld of West Virginia wrote to Governor Jim Justice asking for an order prohibiting the use of TikTok on government equipment.
Justice replied to Weld during a briefing by expressing, “I am not a fanatic of what the Chinese have obtained to the plain in different areas.
And so, Louisiana said today, “I’m announcing that I’ll present a bill during the session to make it law so that this app and all others owned by the Chinese government are either already prohibited from our state government or will be prohibited.”
On December 19, Kyle Ardoin, the state secretary of Louisiana, issued a ban on TikTok on equipment owned by his office and encouraged John Bel Edwards, the governor of the state, to enact a similar restriction on all state-owned equipment.
Pennsylvania
TikTok was removed from all state-owned computers and networks used by the Pennsylvania Treasury on December 22 by State Treasurer Stacy Garrity.
Due to its collecting of personal information and close ties to the communist Chinese government, TikTok “presents a clear hazard,” according to a news statement from Garrity.
On December 30, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly said that TikTok would no longer be permitted on government-owned smartphones.
Ohio
On January 8, the governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine, signed an executive order stating that social media sites in China are “intelligence collection devices” for their government. On Ohio’s list of prohibited platforms were Tencent, WeChat, Weibo, and DingTalk.
North Jersey
To “prohibit the use of high-risk software and services,” such as TikTok, on government-owned devices, Phil Murphy, the governor of New Jersey, issued a cybersecurity order on January 9.
Specifically held by Chinese businesses, New Jersey listed several suppliers, goods, and services to outlaw, including Huawei Technologies, WeChat, and Alibaba.
The governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy, stated that “bolstering cybersecurity is crucial to protecting the overall safety and welfare of our state.”
The preventive steps we are implementing today will guarantee the privacy, security, and integrity of the information assets the New Jersey State government handles. This forceful step will guarantee that the state’s cybersecurity is unified against actors who might try to split us apart.
Arkansas
On January 10, Sarah Sanders signed an executive order prohibiting TikTok on all state-owned devices. This was one of her first acts as governor. In the order, Sanders expressed that it was the approach of the present regime to take “strong and prudent standards to protect the transmission and transmissions systems used by state entities, public primary and secondary schools, cities and counties, and public safety organisations from harm to prevent both unauthorised entry and exploitation of the critical data stored within and crossing through those systems.”
Wisconsin
Tony Evers, the governor of Wisconsin, issued an executive order on January 12 prohibiting the use of TikTok and other “foreign technology,” citing security, safety, and privacy issues. The court’s ruling stated that “TikTok can allegedly gather a significant amount of data from the devices it is installed on, including when, when, and how the user conducts online activity.”
The restriction included platforms from Kaspersky Lab in Russia, WeChat, Alibaba, and Huawei Technologies.
North Carolina
WeChat and TikTok are not allowed to be operated on state-owned devices, according to an executive order given by North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper on January 12 for this reason: “Federal and state officers have identified a significant cybersecurity danger offered by certain technologies and products designed, controlled, or held by commodities in countries that support or support cyberattacks against the United States.”The security of government data technology from foreign countries that vigorously took part in cyberattacks against the United States is crucial, he continued.
edited and proofread by nikita sharma
