On Monday, the BBC said that it had told staff to remove the Chinese-owned video app TikTok unless it was needed for company causes, with Western institutions increasingly taking a harder perspective over data collection fears.
BBC, British Broadcasting reported that it sent staff a message on Sunday saying that we don’t recommend installing TikTok on a BBC corporate device unless there is a justified business reason.
If you do not need TikTok for business reasons, TikTok should be deleted.”
BBC added.
Western authorities have been taking an increasingly firm approach to the Chinese-owned video app, owned by the company ByteDance, mentioning fears that user data could be used or abused by Chinese officials.
Last week, the UK announced a security ban on Chinese-owned TikTok on official devices, in line with steps by the European Union and the United States.
The BBC told that it takes the protection and security of our systems, data, and people incredibly seriously. It added that while usage of TikTok on its corporate devices is still allowed for editorial and marketing purposes, “we will continue to monitor and assess the situation”.
BBC has launched numerous pages on the video app as it tries to reach new audiences, and its official account has 4.4 million followers. ByteDance has long urged that it does not keep data in China or share it with China.
