“On a mobile device, TikTok’s data collection methods provide considerable access to content on the phone,” said Treasury Minister Mona Fortier, adding in a statement that this decision was made “As a precautionary measure”.
“We have no reason to believe at this time that any government information has been compromised,” he added.
A TikTok spokeswoman said that The Canadian decision to block the app was “curious” in that it was made “without citing any specific security issues,” and regretted that the Government has not contacted them before the official announcement.
The popular short and viral video platform, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, is increasingly scrutinized by Western countries, which fear that Beijing could access user data from around the world in this way.
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This ban in Canada takes place days after a similar decision of the European Commission, that prohibited the use of TikTok to its staff to “protect” the institution.
TikTok is also in the crosshairs of the US authorities: A law ratified a few weeks ago by President Joe Biden prohibits the use of this application in the House of Representatives and the Senate, as well as on the devices of administration officials.
Relations between China and Catikland have deteriorated sharply in recent years, particularly after Ottawa’s arrest, at the request of the United States, of Huawei’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, in 2018.
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Canada’s Privacy Commissioner, a nonpartisan ombudsman and Parliament official, announced last week that it has launched an investigation into TikTok with the aim of establishing its compliance with Canadian law.
Its purpose in particular is to verify that “TikTok has obtained valid consent for the collection, use and communication of personal information”.
The entrance Canada Bans TikTok on Government Mobile Devices was first published on newspaper TODAY.
