Following suit, Australia to ban TikTok on government devices

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
4 Apr 2023 08:29

The Attorney-General of Australia says the ban decision followed advice from the country's intelligence agencies and would begin "as soon as practicable."

A TikTok logo is displayed on a smartphone in this illustration taken on January 6, 2020 (Reuters)

Australia said on Tuesday that it will ban TikTok on government devices, joining a growing list of Western nations cracking down on the Chinese-owned app over alleged national security fears.

Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus indicated that the decision followed advice from the country's intelligence agencies and would begin "as soon as practicable."

Australia is the last member of the secretive Five Eyes security alliance to pursue a government TikTok ban, joining its allies the United States, Britain, Canada, and New Zealand.

France, the Netherlands, and the European Commission have made similar moves.

Dreyfus noted that the government would approve some exemptions on a "case-by-case basis" with "appropriate security mitigations in place."

Cyber security experts have claimed that the app -- which enjoys more than one billion users -- could be used to gather data that is then allegedly shared with the Chinese government.

The security concerns derive from a 2017 Chinese law that requires local firms to hand over personal data to the state if it is relevant to national security.

But Beijing has denied that these reforms pose a threat to ordinary users.

China "has never and will not require companies or individuals to collect or provide data located in a foreign country, in a way that violates local law," Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning affirmed in March.

'Rooted in xenophobia'

TikTok has considered that such bans were "rooted in xenophobia," while insisting that it is not owned or operated by the Chinese government.

The company's Australian Spokesperson Lee Hunter told Australia's Channel Seven that TikTok "would never" give data to the Chinese government.

The app is used to share short, lighthearted videos and has exploded in popularity in recent years.

Many government departments were initially eager to use TikTok as a way to connect with a younger demographic that is harder to reach through traditional media channels.

New Zealand banned TikTok from government devices in March, claiming that the risks were "not acceptable in the current New Zealand Parliamentary environment."

Earlier this year, the Australian government announced that it would be stripping Chinese-made CCTV cameras from politicians' offices due to alleged security concerns.