EPC to consider TikTok ban on city devices
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City hall is considering following the province and banning the social media video-sharing app TikTok on municipal devices.
A motion brought forward by deputy mayor Markus Chambers Thursday suggests the ban be put in place, citing the “potential security risks” of the app and other governments taking the same action.
“All data is stored within China, as a result there are mounting concerns this information will be shared with the Chinese government for intelligence purposes and surveillance,” the motion reads.
A motion brought forward by deputy mayor Markus Chambers Thursday suggests the city ban TikTok on municipal devices.
Sean Kilpatrick
Chambers (St. Norbert-Seine River) said the motion was well-received by fellow councilors and he expects it to pass unanimously after it goes to executive policy committee in April.
“It’s very positive, especially when you see what other jurisdictions have been doing around this,” he said.
The app, which is owned by Beijing-based tech company ByteDance, was the subject of a hearing before a U.S. congressional committee Thursday, where its CEO Shou Zi Chew argued for a $1.5 billion plan to route U.S.-based user data to domestic servers.
It’s not the first time the city has discussed the possibility of banning TikTok.
Mayor Scott Gillingham — who himself has a TikTok account with 48 videos — said he was “open to a discussion” on putting a TikTok policy in place last month.
The province issued a TikTok ban on government-issued mobile devices that went into effect March 6.
malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca
