New Zealand bans TikTok from MPs’ machines

The country is following in the footsteps of Canada, the United Kingdom and federal agencies in the United States, which have already banned the social network from government agencies.

By Le Figaro with AFP

published On 03/17/2023 at 03:38to update On 03/17/2023 at 08:39

New Zealand will ban Chinese social network TikTok from devices issued to members of parliament, officials told AFP on Friday, following the country’s stance with other Western countries that have taken similar measures. Rafael Gonzalez Montero, a parliamentary official, said the ban will affect all devices that have access to the parliamentary network. It will enter into force on March 31.

According to Mr. Gonzalez Montero, the risks are not “Unacceptable in the current parliamentary environment in New Zealand”. “The decision was made based on the analyzes of our experts, after discussion with our colleagues in government and internationally.”he added.

Concern about data security

Therefore, New Zealand will follow suit with Canada, the United Kingdom and federal agencies in the United States, which have already banned TikTok from government devices due to data security concerns. The European Commission has also ordered the video-sharing app to be banned from its employees’ devices.

Global action against TikTok began in India in 2020. The social network was on the list of banned apps after bloody clashes on the border with China, with New Delhi called on to defend its sovereignty. In the same year, former President Donald Trump accused TikTok of being a spying tool for Beijing.

TikTok has acknowledged that employees of its parent company, ByteDance, in China have gained access to Americans’ account information, but has always refused to pass that data on to the authorities. The current President of the United States, Joe Biden, has threatened to completely ban the app from the territory, if it does not break away from ByteDance.