Gov. Dunleavy bans TikTok from state government devices

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced Friday that the social media app TikTok is banned from all government electronic devices, effective immediately.

The governor’s decision follows the banning of the popular social media app, which allows users to upload short edited videos, on a federal level. The passing of the $1.7 trillion spending bill that Congress originally unveiled in December includes a ban on federal government devices.

Dunleavy said in a press release that he is prohibiting the use of TikTok due to security concerns related to the app’s parent company, ByteDance Ltd., which is headquartered in China. Because of its location, ByteDance would be required under Chinese law to hand over company data, including users’ private information, to government officials.

“The collection of personal data and the intellectual property along with other proprietary information of users, governments, and companies within in the United States, including the State of Alaska (State) is of concern to me and my fellow Alaskans,” Dunleavy wrote.

“Simply put, TikTok poses a clear risk to any network or user it touches.”

TikTok is prevalent among younger crowds and is reportedly the second most popular domain in the world, and ranks ahead of all other social media apps in terms of downloads.

Dunleavy added that the app will be banned on devices from all state executive branch agencies. In addition, no state employees may download or use the app or visit any TikTok website on the state network.

The governor said that any state devices found to have TikTok downloaded onto them will be immediately secured and the app will be removed.