LONDON (AP) — TikTok is in the crosshairs of US authorities, where new legislation threatens a nationwide ban unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, divests. It would be the biggest blow yet to the popular video-sharing app, which faces various restrictions across the world.
TikTok is already banned in a handful of countries and on government-issued devices in a number of others, due to official concerns that the app poses privacy and cybersecurity issues.
These fears are reflected in the US bill, which represents the culmination of long-standing bipartisan fears in Washington that China’s communist leaders could force ByteDance to hand over American user data, or influence Americans by removing or promoting certain content. TikTok has long maintained that it does not share data with the Chinese government and its CEO has taken a defiant stance, vowing to fight back.
Here are the places that have partial or complete bans on TikTok:
AFGHANISTAN
TikTok has been banned since 2022, as has the video game PUBG, after the country’s Taliban leaders decided to ban access to it on the grounds that it protects young people from “being misled”.
AUSTRALIA
TikTok is not permitted on devices issued by the Australian federal government. Attorney General Mark Dreyfus said he made the decision after consulting with the country’s intelligence and security agencies.
BELGIUM
The National Security Council decided last month to ban indefinitely TikTok from devices owned or paid for by the federal government. The ban was issued as a temporary measure last year due to concerns over cybersecurity, privacy and misinformation. Prime Minister Alexander de Croo said the decision was based on warnings from the state security services and the country’s cybersecurity center.
CANADA
Federally issued devices are prohibited from using TikTok. Officials cited an “unacceptable” risk to privacy and security and said the app would be removed from devices and employees would no longer be able to download it.
DENMARK
The Danish Ministry of Defense has banned its employees from having TikTok on their work phones, ordering employees who have it installed to remove the app from their devices as soon as possible. The ministry said the reasons for the ban included both “significant security considerations” as well as “a very limited work-related need for use of the app.”
EUROPEAN UNION
The European Parliament, European Commission and EU Council, the three main institutions in the 27-member bloc, imposed a ban on TikTok on staff devices. Under the European Parliament’s ban, lawmakers and staff were also advised to remove the TikTok app from their personal devices.
FRANCE
“Recreational” use of TikTok and other social media apps like Twitter and Instagram on civil servants’ phones has been banned due to concerns about insufficient data security measures. The French government did not name specific applications but noted that the decision came after other governments took measures targeting…
