New Zealand says it will ban TikTok on devices with access to its parliamentary network

Arrangements would be made for staff who needed to use TikTok “to perform their democratic duties”
22 March 2023
Image by Nitish Gupta from Pixabay

New Zealand’s parliament will effectively ban Chinese-owned social media app TikTok from the phones of MPs over cybersecurity concerns.

The move comes a day after British authorities said they were banning TikTok from government mobile phones on security grounds, following similar moves by the United States.

In a statement, New Zealand’s Parliamentary Service chief executive, Rafael Gonzalez-Montero, said TikTok would be “removed from all devices with access to the parliamentary network”, but arrangements would be made for staff who needed to use TikTok “to perform their democratic duties”.  

“This decision has been made based on our own experts’ analysis and following discussion with our colleagues across government and internationally”, he said.

“Based on this information the service has determined that the risks are not acceptable in the current New Zealand parliamentary environment.”

The ban is expected to take place at the end of March.

- CyberBeat

 

About CyberBeat

CyberBeat is a grassroots initiative from a team of producers and subject matter experts, driven out of frustration at the lack of media coverage, responding to an urgent need to provide a clear, concise, informative and educational approach to the growing fields of Cybersecurity and Digital Privacy.

Contact CyberBeat

If you have a story of interest, a comment, a concern or if you'd just like to say Hi, please contact us

Terms & Policies >>

Sponsors

We couldn't do this without the support of our sponsors and contributors.