NEW YORK – New York City has followed the footsteps of the federal government and over half of the U.S. states by instructing its employees to remove TikTok from their city-issued smartphones. This move is part of a larger trend of prohibiting the use of the Chinese-owned social media app on government-owned devices.
Mayor Eric Adams’ spokesperson, Jonah Allon, stated that while social media can facilitate connections among New Yorkers and the city, security remains a priority. The city’s leading information security experts have determined that TikTok poses a security risk to the city’s technical networks. Consequently, the app must be removed from city-owned devices within the next 30 days.
The federal government initiated a similar action earlier this year by requiring employees to uninstall TikTok from government-issued mobile phones due to concerns that its parent company, ByteDance, might share user data with the Chinese government. More than half of the U.S. states have implemented comparable bans.
Since 2020, New York state has prohibited the use of TikTok on state-owned devices, with exceptions for promotional purposes. Despite apprehensions about potential cybersecurity risks, TikTok officials have contended that such fears are baseless. There has been no immediate response from TikTok following inquiries regarding the New York City ban.