US Senate Committee approves bill to ban TikTok on federal employees' devices

The United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs has approved the 'No TikTok on Government Devices Act', which will now go on the US Senate floor for a vote. The bill would restrict federal employees from using TikTok on government-issued devices. The bill was brought in by Senator Josh Hawley amid growing fear of security threat posed by the Chinese-owned app. US lawmakers fear that the personal data of millions of American citizens could fall into the hands of the Communist nation, where private companies are strictly regulated and are required to share information with the government. The bill was passed unanimously on July 22 by the Senate Committee. 

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US House of Representatives also passed a bill earlier this week to bar federal employees from downloading the app in government-issued devices. TikTok is facing increasing scrutiny in the United States for the past several weeks with US Secretary of State threatening a ban on the Chinese owned application. The United States, which has already implemented sanctions against Chinese mobile service provider Huawei, is reportedly planning to ban TikTok from its territory. The United States has accused TikTok of sharing personal data of US citizens with the Chinese Communist Party and has reportedly warned the company to either become an American firm or face a ban.

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Scrutiny in other nations

Australia is also mulling about putting a ban on the short video sharing platform because of security concerns. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in a statement that his government is taking a 'good look' on the Chinese app. TikTok was recently banned from India, one of its largest markets, last month after the Indian government accused the company of stealing users' data in an unauthorized manner and transferring it outside the country. TikTok along with 58 other apps was banned in order to protect the data and privacy of Indian citizens, said the government while imposing the ban.

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