Staff Reports
Due to security concerns, the House of Representatives blocked members of Congress and their staff members from using TikTok on government-issued gadgets.
In an internal memo, Catherine Szpindor, the House's chief administrative officer, noted that TikTok was a high-risk app due to various security issues.
According to the memo, House staff members are not allowed to download or use TikTok on their mobile devices. Those who have the app on their device will be asked to remove it.
This move by the House makes it the latest government agency to block the Chinese social media platform.
The Senate passed a similar measure earlier this month for federal employees. As of late 2019, at least 19 states have banned the TikTok app on their government-issued devices. Other branches of the military have also joined the list.
The Trump administration started warning about the growing popularity of TikTok and WeChat in the country. It threatened a total ban on the two social media platforms unless they were sold to a US-based company.
Despite the president's ban on foreign social media platforms, Joe Biden, the then-vice president, ordered a security review on all foreign apps.
In June, a report by the website BuzzFeed revealed that the data of TikTok users was repeatedly accessed by China. One of the directors was reportedly recorded referring to an individual identified as Master Admin, who has access to everything.
FBI Director Chris Wray warned members of Congress in November about how China could use TikTok to collect and use data on its users. He also noted that the country could potentially use the platform to carry out influence operations.
