Senate passes bill to ban TikTok on government devices

The U.S. Senate unanimously approved legislation on Wednesday that would ban the use of TikTok on government-owned devices amid security and privacy concerns related to the social media platform. 

The “No TikTok on Government Devices Act,” which would “prohibit certain individuals from downloading or using TikTok on any device issued by the United States or a government corporation,” was introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley and unanimously passed on Wednesday. 

“TikTok is a Trojan Horse for the Chinese Communist Party. It’s a major security risk to the United States, and until it is forced to sever ties with China completely, it has no place on government devices,” Hawley said in a statement. “States across the U.S. are banning TikTok on government devices. It’s time for Joe Biden and the Democrats to help do the same.”

The bill comes as several state governments are taking steps to ban the short-form video app from state-owned devices. Most recently, on December 8, Texas Governor Gregg Abbott banned the social media platform from government-issued cell phones, laptops, tablets, and desktops to protect sensitive information pertaining to the state government. 

There have been rising concerns about how TikTok handles data privacy, with federal officials fearing that American data could be accessed by the Chinese government through the use of the app.

Earlier this week, a group of U.S. lawmakers announced new legislation that seeks to ban the social media platform TikTok from operating in the United States completely. Introduced by Senator Marco Rubio, the ANTI-SOCIAL CCP Act intends to protect the privacy of TikTok’s users and safeguard U.S. user data from the Chinese government. 

The bill would “block and prohibit all transactions” by social media companies based in or under the “substantial influence” of China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela. 

The “No TikTok on Government Devices Act” still needs to be approved by the U.S. House of Representatives before going to President Joe Biden for approval. The House of Representatives must pass the bill by next week when the current congressional session ends.