Data security is not one of the advantages of the popular social media app. Now the EU Commission is blocking the app, which belongs to the Chinese Bytedance group, from the cell phones of its employees.
Employees of the EU Commission have to delete the social media app Tiktok from their work devices due to security concerns. In addition, the video app belonging to a Chinese company must be removed from private devices on which apps from the EU Commission are used by March 15, a spokeswoman for the Brussels authority confirmed on Thursday. The reason for the decision are concerns about cyber security.
According to the spokeswoman, this is a temporary measure that should be reviewed regularly. The Council of Member States will take similar action, according to an EU official. Tiktok criticized the move. “We are disappointed by this decision, which we believe is misguided and based on fundamental misunderstandings,” said a spokeswoman. The EU Commission was contacted to correct this.
Role model for other German authorities?
The FDP MEP Moritz Körner supported the measure against it. “German authorities should follow suit and also ban the China app from all German business cell phones as quickly as possible,” Körner demanded.
The Internet platform Tiktok, which belongs to the Chinese Bytedance group, has long been accused of insufficient data security and a lack of protection for young users. It is feared, for example, that the Chinese state could have access to Tiktok data. Tiktok denies that.
In the United States, then-President Donald Trump threatened to ban Tiktok a few years ago. He pointed to concerns that Chinese authorities could use Tiktok data to gather information about Americans. Joe Biden’s government is also putting pressure on the service. The “Wall Street Journal” recently reported that Tiktok had presented Washington with a plan for a far-reaching restructuring of the US business in order to remain active in the USA.
