Texas Governor Greg Abbott joined other governors and banned TikTok from state devices.
TikTok is a Chinese spyware app masquerading as a social media platform.
“TikTok harvests vast amounts of data from its users’ devices — including when, where and how they conduct internet activity — and offers this trove of potentially sensitive information to the Chinese government,” Abbott said in a letter to state officials on Wednesday.
ABC News reported:
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott directed state agencies on Wednesday to ban the use of social media platform TikTok on government-issued devices over concerns about how the China-owned app handles data on American infrastructure and other sensitive information.
TikTok has faced growing scrutiny from state and federal officials over fears that American data could fall into the possession of the Chinese government.
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita sued TikTok on Wednesday for allegedly misleading users about the Chinese government’s capacity to access their data and showing mature content to minors. It marks the first state lawsuit against the app.
On Tuesday, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced a similar prohibition on TikTok, as well as Chinese technology makers like Huawei and ZTE, from use on state business.
The House Republican Conference is working to ban the use of TikTok by federal government employees, according to a new report.
The social media platform’s parent company, ByteDance, has ties to the Chinese Communist Party.
According to a report from the Daily Caller, legislation will be introduced to the Judiciary Committee, which is set to be led by Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, when Republicans take control in the next Congress.
“We’re working on something right now,” an unnamed Republican aide told the Caller.