The European Commission (EC), the executive branch of the European Union, has prohibited the use of TikTok on devices that it owns and has asked its employees to remove the app from their personal phones and tablets that are part of its mobile device service. The directive applies to any devices that are used for work purposes. According to the EC, the measure aims to protect against cybersecurity threats and actions that could be exploited for cyber attacks against the corporate environment of the Commission.
The EC has around 32,000 permanent and contract employees, and they have been instructed to delete TikTok as soon as possible and no later than March 15th. If they fail to comply, they will lose access to corporate apps, including the EC’s email service and Skype for Business. The EC has also stated that it will keep the security developments of other social media platforms under constant review.
TikTok has expressed its surprise at the move, stating that it believes the suspension is misguided and based on fundamental misconceptions. The app’s spokesperson also noted that the EC did not contact them directly nor offer any explanation. They have requested a meeting with the EC to set the record straight on how they protect the data of the 125 million people across the EU who use TikTok every month. TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is based in China, and officials in several countries have raised concerns about the potential for the Chinese government to access user data through the app.
In the US, the government has already banned the app from most of the devices it owns, while officials in many states have imposed similar bans. There are also efforts to ban TikTok entirely in the US. In November, the EC announced that there were multiple ongoing investigations into TikTok’s data practices. TikTok has stated that it is enhancing its approach to data security, including establishing three data centers in Europe to store user data locally, reducing employee access to data, and minimizing data flows outside of Europe.
