US Government Takes Action to Remove TikTok from Government Devices in Response to Security Concerns

The White House has issued guidance to all federal agencies to remove the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok from all government devices within 30 days. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) said the move is a “critical step forward in addressing the risks presented by the app to sensitive government data.”

The move comes amid increasing scrutiny of the app in Washington over security concerns. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has warned that any effort by China to send lethal aid to Russia for its war in Ukraine would be met with serious consequences. Blinken said in Kazakhstan that the US “cannot be putting forward peace proposals on the one hand, while actually feeding the flames of the fire that Russia has started with the other hand.”

The US has been warning for the past 10 days that it has intelligence that China is considering sending lethal aid to Russia. This is the most specific public admonition on the issue to Beijing so far. The US has also said that any Chinese firms or people involved in such an effort would be targeted.

TikTok has been under increasing scrutiny in the US due to its Chinese ownership. The app has been accused of collecting user data and sending it to the Chinese government. The US government has also expressed concerns about the app’s potential to be used for disinformation campaigns.

The White House’s guidance to remove TikTok from all government devices is a step towards addressing these security concerns. It remains to be seen what other measures the US government will take to protect its citizens from the potential risks posed by the app.