The TikTok logo on a smartphone. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper is banning TikTok on state-owned devices.
AP file photo
RALEIGH
TikTok will no longer be allowed on state-owned mobile phones, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper ordered Thursday, citing cybersecurity risks.
The order follows moves already taken in the federal government and at least 20 other states.
TikTok, a popular social media app featuring short videos, is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. A few Republican lawmakers had previously asked Cooper to ban it on government devices.
Within 14 days, by Jan. 26, the N.C. Department of Information Technology and the state’s chief information officer will have a policy prohibiting the use of TikTok, WeChat and “potentially other applications on state agency information technology systems in a manner that presents an unacceptable cybersecurity risk” on state-owned computers and phones, according to the governor’s office. There are about 60,000 state employees.
According to Executive Order 276, TikTok and WeChat are prohibited from being installed on state devices and must be removed if they are already on a device. According to the order, the only exceptions will be given to law enforcement or for other purposes allowed by DIT.
Cooper, a Democrat, cited cybersecurity professionals identifying TikTok and WeChat as “high-risk applications due to their lack of sufficient privacy controls and connections to countries that sponsor or support cyber-attacks against the United States.”
Jim Weaver, N.C. Department of Information Technology secretary and state chief information officer, called the order essential to the agency’s work to protect the state’s IT systems, data and assets.
Cooper’s order has bipartisan support, including from two Republican lawmakers who have previously shared their concerns about TikTok.
N.C. House Rep. Jason Saine of Lincolnton and Rep. Jon Hardister of Whitsett, both Republicans, sent Cooper a letter in late December urging Cooper to ban TikTok on state devices, The News & Observer previously reported.
Saine called the order “an important first step to ensure the privacy of our citizens and the security of North Carolina’s government networks.”
Hardister praised the collaboration and said he looked forward to establishing long-term plans in cybersecurity, possibly in the legislative long session. The General Assembly just started its session with a swearing-in ceremony and returns Jan. 25 to begin filing bills and moving legislation.
“As we go into this year’s legislative session, the General Assembly will need to consider enacting a permanent statutory solution, along with the creation of a framework to monitor changes in information technology,” Hardister said in a statement on Thursday.
N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein has been investigating TikTok for the past year, and has raised concerns about the platform targeting children.
On Thursday, Stein, a Democrat, reiterated his concerns about privacy and security on social media.
“We, not social media companies, should be able to make decisions about what and how much we share, who we share it with, and how it is used,” Stein said in a statement.
Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan covers North Carolina state government and politics at The News & Observer. She previously covered Durham, and has received the McClatchy President’s Award, N.C. Open Government Coalition Sunshine Award and several North Carolina Press Association awards, including for politics and investigative reporting.
