South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem signed an executive order this week banning all government workers, agencies, and contractors from using TikTok on state-issued devices.
The executive order is a response to TikTok’s “growing national security threat,” as described by Gov. Noem, due to the possibility that it may be used by the Chinese Communist Party to collect user information.
Governor Noem is skeptical about TitkTok and believes it is gathering information to use against the United States of America:
“South Dakota will have no part in the intelligence gathering operations of nations who hate us,” Gov. Noem said “The Chinese Community Party uses information that it gathers on TikTok to manipulate the American people, and they gather data off the devices that access the platform.”
The order is effective immediately and applies to all employees and agencies of the State of South Dakota, as well as individuals and companies who contract with the state, commissions, and authority, and their agents. The directive forbids installing or using the TikTok app or browsing the website on state-owned or leased electronic devices with internet access.
“Because of our serious duty to protect the private data of South Dakota citizens, we must take this action immediately. I hope other states will follow South Dakota’s lead, and Congress should take broader action, as well,” continued Governor Noem.
Tiktok was created by the Chinese company ByteDance, which is why there have been multiple efforts to ban the platform since the government is concerned about potential National Security Risks.
