UK to ban TikTok on government phones

Britain is set to announce a ban on TikTok on government phones on Thursday, PA Media reported, a move that would follow other Western countries who have barred the Chinese-owned video app over security concerns.

TikTok has come under increasing scrutiny due to fears that user data from the app owned by Beijing-based company ByteDance could end up in the hands of the Chinese government, undermining Western security interests.

Britain's National Cyber Security Centre has been reviewing whether TikTok should be barred from government phones, while the United States, Canada, Belgium and the European Commission have already banned the app.


When asked about a potential ban on TikTok, security minister Tom Tugendhat said earlier in the week that understanding the challenges posed by these apps was "incredibly important." TikTok has said it would be disappointed by such a ban.

The government is expected to make a statement on the security of its devices later on Thursday.