US to ban TikTok on government devices by February-end due to Chinese link, says report

The federal government is set to ban the use of TikTok on all government devices by the end of February, as the implementation of the No TikTok on Government Devices Act approaches. The bipartisan law, introduced by Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, became law as part of an omnibus spending bill, according to a FoxBusiness report.

The act requires the Office of Management and Budget to create standards for the removal of TikTok and similar apps from all federal agency devices, with exceptions made for law enforcement and national security purposes. This move stems from national security concerns related to TikTok's ties to China.

The No TikTok on Government Devices Act, introduced by Senator Josh Hawley, was passed unanimously in December 2022 as part of the omnibus spending bill. This law requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to develop standards for federal agencies to remove TikTok and similar apps from all their devices, with exceptions for national security and law enforcement activities.



The omnibus took effect on December 29, 2022, setting a 60-day deadline for OMB to release its TikTok removal guidance, which is due by February 27, 2023. On January 27, 2023, Senator Hawley sent a letter to OMB requesting an update on the development of the removal standards.

Video sharing platform, TikTok, is owned by ByteDance which is a Beijing-based company - the increasing concern about the company's ownership has led to investigations by the Treasury Department's Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS) over the potential national security risks posed by the foreign ownership of the company or foreign investments in American companies, as per the report.
This investigation aims to evaluate the possible data breach or propaganda exposure that may result from the Chinese Communist Party's potential compulsion of the social media app. The outcome of the CFIUS probe is unknown.

FAQs:

1. When did TikTok acquire Musically?
   2017
2. Who owns ByteDance?
   Zhang Yiming