TikTok banned on all House-issued mobile devices - NBC News

Lawmakers and staffers indispensable delete TikTok from immoderate House-issued mobile phones and are prohibited from downloading the fashionable app connected those devices, according to an interior memo obtained by NBC News.

The memo, sent Tuesday by Catherine L. Szpindor, the main administrative serviceman of the House, said the prohibition comes aft the Office of Cybersecurity recovered TikTok to beryllium a "high hazard to users due to a fig of information risks."

All lawmakers and staffers were directed to delete the app from their phones.

"House unit are NOT allowed to download the TikTok app connected immoderate House mobile devices," the memo said. "If you person the TikTok app connected your House mobile device, you volition beryllium contacted to region it."

A typical for TikTok did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

The determination comes aft a measurement banning TikTok connected immoderate authorities devices was included successful the $1.7 trillion omnibus spending measure passed by Congress past week. The proviso included a prohibition of the app and immoderate exertion provided by TikTok’s genitor institution ByteDance, based successful Beijing, connected each Executive Branch devices, but didn't use to members of Congress and their staff.

The directive from the House does not use to the Senate, wherever immoderate lawmakers, including Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., person called for the app to beryllium completely banned successful the United States.

FBI Director Christopher Wray warned members of Congress aft the midterm predetermination that the Chinese authorities could usage TikTok to power users’ devices, for power oregon espionage purposes.

The institution said past week it was moving to "meaningfully address immoderate information concerns that person been raised astatine some the national and authorities level. These plans person been developed nether the oversight of our country’s apical nationalist information agencies — plans that we are good underway successful implementing — to further unafraid our level successful the United States, and we volition proceed to little lawmakers connected them."