On Monday., Governor Kay Ivey sent a memo to all state agency heads to announce she has banned the use of TikTok on state devices and the state network. The governor’s office said that this was a cyber security action by the governor to protect the state and Alabamians’ sensitive data from Chinese infiltration activities.
Ivey shared the memo on Twitter. Ivey wrote, “Protecting Alabamians’ rights is a must, and I surely don’t take a security threat from China lightly. That’s why I have banned the use of the TikTok app on our state devices and network.”
“Protecting the state of Alabama and our citizens’ right to privacy is a must, and I surely don’t take a security threat from China lightly,” Ivey said in the announcement. “After we discussed this with our OIT secretary, I came to the no-brainer decision to ban the use of the TikTok app on our state devices and network. Look, I’m no TikTok user, but the evidence speaks for itself, and I want to make sure I’m doing everything we can as a state to stand against this growing security risk.”
Ivey explained the decision saying that the computer devices and networks used by our state government house significant amounts of Alabamians’ sensitive data. They also ensure the proper functioning of numerous automated government functions.
Gov. Ivey said that national security officials have warned of growing threats posed by the video-sharing app Tik Tok. Since TikTok is owned by a Chinese parent company, they are potentially subject to Chinese laws enabling its data to be shared with the Chinese Communist Party and the Chinese intelligence community.
Ivey warned that Tik Tok harvests vast amounts of data from its users, much of which has no legitimate connection to the app’s supposed purpose of video sharing. For example, when users run the TikTok app for the first time, they give Tik Tok access to information such as their device brand and model, mobile carrier, browsing history, app and file names, and types, keystroke patterns and rhythms, wireless connections, and geolocation. She added that use of TikTok involving state IT infrastructure thus creates an unacceptable vulnerability to Chinese infiltration operations.
FBI Director Chris Wray has been expressing his concerns about TikTok.
Wray said the FBI is concerned that the Chinese could control the app’s recommendation algorithm, “which allows them to manipulate content, and if they want to, to use it for influence operations.”
“Given these serious security concerns related to the use of TikTok, I have asked the Secretary of Information Technology to update his agency’s policies to prevent Tik Tok from accessing the state IT network and state IT devices even while providing exceptions for law enforcement and other essential governmental uses of the app,” stated Gov. Ivey. “Consistent with these policies, executive branch agencies should immediately take all necessary steps to prevent TikTok from accessing sensitive state data.”
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