TikTok now also taboo for ministers and civil servants in UK 15:21 in Economy The British government is following other countries, such as the US and Belgium.

The United Kingdom is also going to ban TikTok on the phones and other devices of ministers and government officials. The country follows the United States, Canada, Belgium and the European Union. The ban takes effect immediately.

The government is afraid that data will end up with the Chinese government via the app, which is largely owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. Earlier it appeared that some employees of the tech company have access to user data from the West. The British government considers the risks to be so great that a ban has been introduced. TikTok has always denied that Chinese authorities can access user data.

Disappointment at TikTok

TikTok is disappointed with the British government’s decision. The company tells Reuters news agency that it is becoming part of major geopolitical tensions that the app and its millions of users in the United Kingdom have nothing to do with.

Eventually there will be a list of apps that can be downloaded on government equipment, says British minister Dowden. The ban does not apply to the private telephones and other devices of civil servants or to government equipment for which TikTok is important. Last year, the British government already stopped a TikTok account due to concerns among officials.

Majority of the House of Representatives

This morning, the US government warned that the app will be completely banned in the US if the Chinese company Bytedance does not sell its shares in TikTok. In the US, there are serious concerns about national security in the event that user data does indeed end up with the Chinese government.

TikTok is also a topic of discussion in the Netherlands. Last month it appeared that a majority of the House of Representatives wants to ban the popular app. With this, the app would disappear from the work phones and other equipment of about 140,000 government officials.