Having a government job might mean you cannot have the TikTok app downloaded on any of your devices.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the security minister Tom Tugendhat have both hinted at following the US and the European Union in banning the popular app from government phones and devices. Washington and the European Commission have already moved to ban the app on devices issued to staff or on personal phones used for work.
This means that if you work in a government role, such as being a member of the civil service, you might be banned from having the app on your phone if you use it for work purposes.
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TikTok, which is Chinese-owned, has said the fears behind bans in other jurisdictions were “misplaced”, adding that it was “tightening” security around accessing UK and European user data. TikTok has long argued that it does not share data with China but Chinese intelligence legislation requires firms to assist the Communist Party when requested.
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Despite increased talks on the safety of the app, many MPs are regular users of TikTok. Former health secretary and reality TV star Matt Hancock is a regular user while Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Grant Shapps also has an account. Nadine Dorries was also known to post on TikTok when she was serving as culture secretary during Boris Johnson’s premiership.
The Conservative Party leader’s hint comes after senior backbenchers had urged him to follow the US and Brussels’s example. Mr Sunak, speaking during a visit in San Diego, US, told the BBC: “We don’t routinely comment on matters like that.
“But what I would say is, of course, we take security of devices seriously. And we look also at what our allies are doing and we’re in the process of doing all of that.”
It comes after The Sunday Times reported that experts at GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre had assessed the app and identified risks to sensitive information.
Speaking to Sky News, Tom Tugendhat said: “What certainly is clear is for many young people TikTok is now a news source and, just as it’s quite right we know who owns the news sources in the UK… it’s important we know who owns the news sources that are feeding into our phones.”
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