TikTok ban looms for Australian government phones

Ministers are reportedly using burner phones to run the app, which has sparked fears that data could be accessed by Chinese officials.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neill is expected to announce a ban of the app’s use on government devices.

Beijing has historically reacted poorly when a western government has reacted to security concerns around the app, claiming bans are an overreaction.

Government Services and NDIS Minister Bill Shorten said it was a “serious issue”.

“The government is reviewing the social media platforms,” he told Today.

He insisted no “formal ban” was in place, but said he had taken TikTok off his own government-issued phone.

Cyber security expert Susan McLean said the app was simply “not safe to use”.

“Politicians really need to step up to the plate and start to use more legitimate, if you like, platforms where the security of the nation is not going to be compromised by their use,” she told Today.

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McLean said the company, being based in China, was “beholden” to the Chinese government.

“If you need to go to the degree of having a burner phone to use Tiktok, that should ring alarm bells with you and I am concerned that it doesn’t,” she said.

The moves were prompted by growing concerns that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, would give user data such as browsing history and location to the Chinese government, or push propaganda and misinformation on its behalf.

The company has insisted such concerns are based on “misinformation” and said it was taking steps to boost protection of user data from the UK and Europe.

“We believe these bans have been based on fundamental misconceptions and driven by wider geopolitics, in which TikTok and our millions of users in the UK, play no part,” the company said.

McLean said the company was good at “propaganda” but did not “walk the walk” when it came to data protection.