By Oyintari Ben
The European Commission has prohibited TikTok from being used on official devices.
The EU’s executive body is the most recent government agency to request that staff members delete the app because of concerns that it might be used to spy on its users.
Bytedance, a Chinese company that owns TikTok, has consistently refuted allegations that its software is being used for spying. It claims that the user information it obtains is similar to that collected by other applications and is used for advertising.
But authorities in the US and Europe have frequently sounded the alert about possible harm.
Employees of the European Commission have now been instructed to remove the app from all work-related apps on personal devices and those used for official business.
In an email to workers that was widely publicised, the EC Corporate Management Board decided to ban the TikTok application on business devices and personal devices signed up for the Commission mobile device service to protect Commission data and improve its cybersecurity.
Such restrictions are already in place in other US jurisdictions. Most states and the federal government forbid employees from installing the software on work-related devices.
An inquiry for comment from TikTok has yet to receive a response.
