"Beginning immediately: House staff are not allowed to download the TikTok app on any House mobile devices. TikTok is not allowed on House mobile devices. If you have the TikTok app on your House mobile device, you will be contacted to remove it," the House Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) said in an internal notice, shared by US media.
The CAO’s Office of Cybersecurity deemed TikTok’s mobile application a threat to users due to a number of security risks, the notice said.
The $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill passed by Congress earlier this month requires federal government agencies to remove TikTok from their network of official devices, although some agencies have already imposed their own bans.
TikTok has been the subject of US federal government scrutiny for alleged ties between their parent company, ByteDance, and the Chinese government.