Tik-Tok is banned from state communication networks for cybersecurity reasons

The Kosovo government today voted to ban the use of the Chinese social network Tik-Tok in state communication networks in order to protect the country’s cyber security. At the meeting of the Kosovo government, it was proposed by Deputy Interior Minister Bardhyl Dobra to ban this application.

“In order to increase cyber security, MBP recommends the government to stop the installation, use and operation of the social network application Tik Tok and all its services in all state communication networks and on all official information and communication devices owned and managed by public institutions,” he said. “All public institutions that own and manage state communication networks are obliged to set the necessary technical restrictions on the prohibition and operation of Tik Tok social network services in official workplaces.”

“All civil servants are obliged to remove the Tik-Tok application from their official devices,” Dobra added. “This measure is in line with Article 16, paragraph 13 of the Law on Cybersecurity, the measures taken by the allied states and aims to protect the state institutions of the Republic of Kosovo from cybersecurity threats and measures that can be used due to attacks on the technology, information and communication infrastructure of state institutions,” he concluded.

Many countries, including the US, have expressed concerns about the use of Tik Tok. In December 2022, Taiwan also imposed a ban on TikTok in the public sector after the FBI warned that TikTok posed a national security risk./TheGeopost/