Governor of Wisconsin Bans TikTok on State-owned Devices For Security Reasons

In addition to forbidding the use of Chinese-owned TikTok on state-owned smartphones, the Democratic governor announced a ban on suppliers, products, and services from nine companies, including Huawei Technologies, Hikvision, Tencent Holdings (OTC:TCEHY), ZTE Corporation (HK:07), and Kaspersky Lab.

Evers stated, "In the digital age, defending our state's technology and cybersecurity infrastructure and digital privacy must be our state's top concern."

As of this week, over twenty additional states, including Ohio, New Jersey, and Arkansas, have banned TikTok on state-owned devices.

TikTok claimed that it was "disappointed that so many states are jumping on the political bandwagon to pass legislation that do nothing to improve cybersecurity in their own areas and are based on false claims about TikTok."

Some Democratic governors have been slower than their Republican counterparts to ban TikTok on state-owned devices.

Christopher Wray, director of the FBI in the United States, claimed in November that TikTok poses concerns to national security, which prompted efforts to prohibit the app on government computers. Wray called attention to the risk that the Chinese government may manipulate users or seize control of their devices via the program.

Since 2015, TikTok has endeavored to ensure Washington that the Chinese Communist Party or any other institution under Beijing's control cannot access or alter the personal information of American citizens.

A government finance bill signed into law last month by President Joe Biden barred federal employees from downloading or using TikTok on government-owned devices.

The law gives the White House's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) sixty days to "develop criteria and recommendations for executive agencies mandating the removal" of TikTok from federal equipment. The OMB declined to comment on Thursday.