TRENTON, Ont.
Canada announced on Monday that it has banned TikTok from all government devices for security reasons and it could be the start of a new crackdown, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
“This may be the first step, maybe the only step we have to take, but at every step we will ensure the safety of Canadians,” Trudeau told reporters on Monday.
“Obviously we take freedom of expression very seriously, the freedom that Canadians have online as they wish,” he said.
“But we also have very important principles around data protection, protecting the safety and security of Canadians that we will always strive to improve.”
The ban came into effect on Tuesday (February 28)
TikTok is owned by tech company ByteDance Beijing and there are concerns the parent company is allowing the Chinese government access to private TikTok user information.
The move follows an investigation into TikTok announced by the Canadian government last week.
The findings of the investigation were that the app “presented an unacceptable level of risk to privacy and security,” Mona Fortier, chair of the board of directors of Finance Canada, said in a statement.
Canada’s ban follows in the footsteps of other governments. The European Commission and European Council have banned the app, and the majority of US federal employees are barred from having the device on their government phones.
The US Congress is considering legislation that would ban TikTok nationwide.
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