List of countries that have banned TikTok as of 2023
Here's a full list of countries that have already banned TikTok.
| COUNTRY | TIKTOK STATUS | DETAILS |
|---|---|---|
Afghanistan |
Banned |
April 21, 2022, Inamullah Samangani, director of the Information and Culture Department of Kandahar, tweeted a cabinet decision to instruct The Ministry of Telecommunications and Information Technology to block the South Korean game PUBG and the application called TikTok, which are causing confusion among the younger generation. |
India |
Banned |
June 29, 2020, The Ministry of Information Technology in India has banned 59 mobile apps, including TikTok, WeChat, and Weibo, under section 69A of the Information Technology Act. The government banned the apps over concerns about compromising India's sovereignty and public order, as well as data security and privacy. The ban aims to protect Indian users and cyberspace, it was recommended by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre and the Computer Emergency Response Team. |
Australia |
Partially Banned |
April 4, 2023, The Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP, Attorney-General, authorised the Secretary of the Attorney-General's Department to issue a mandatory direction under the Protective Security Policy Framework to prohibit the TikTok app on devices issued by Commonwealth departments and agencies. According to PSPF Direction 001-2023, the TikTok application poses significant security and privacy risks to non-corporate Commonwealth entities arising from extensive collection of user data and exposure to extrajudicial directions from a foreign government that conflict with Australian law. |
Belgium |
Partially Banned |
March 10, 2023, the National Security Council implemented a six-month temporary ban on the use of TikTok on service devices of federal government personnel. This decision was made based on an analysis by the State Security (VSSE) and a recommendation from the Center for Cybersecurity Belgium (CCB). The VSSE and CCB warned that TikTok collects a large amount of data from users, often without their knowledge. They also cautioned that TikTok's algorithms can manipulate the flow and content of information. Another concern was that Chinese law requires TikTok to cooperate with Chinese intelligence services. The ban applies to all devices whose purchase, subscription, or use are funded by the federal government. After six months, the ban will be reevaluated. |
Canada |
Partially Banned |
February 27, 2023, The Canadian government has announced a ban on the use of TikTok application on government-issued mobile devices, citing privacy and security concerns. The ban came into effect on February 28, 2023, and users of these devices will not be able to download the application in the future. The decision follows a review of TikTok by the Chief Information Officer of Canada, who determined that the app poses an unacceptable level of risk to privacy and security. |
Denmark |
Partially Banned |
March 6, 2023, The Ministry of Defense has banned TikTok on official devices. The decision was made following a recommendation from the Center for Cyber Security (CFCS) on February 24, 2023. The center advised against using TikTok on state-owned devices, as the app requests extensive access to device information, including microphone and camera. Furthermore, as the app is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company, it is subject to Chinese security legislation, which allows authorities in the country to collect information from Chinese companies. |
Estonia |
Partially Banned |
March 29, 2023, The Minister of IT and Foreign Trade Kristjan Järvan has announced that the use and installation of the TikTok app will be banned on smartphones issued by the state to officials. In an interview with the daily Eesti Päevaleht, Järvan stated that the app will be removed from centrally managed smartphones and its installation will be prohibited from this month onwards. |
France |
Partially Banned |
March 24, 2023, Stanislas Guerini, the French Minister of Transformation and Public Service, has tweeted that the French government has banned the downloading and installation of recreational applications, such as TikTok, on professional phones provided to public officials due to security concerns. |
Latvia |
Partially Banned |
March 1, 2023, Edgars Rinkēvičs, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, tweeted a message explaining that he has deleted his TikTok account and prohibited the use of the app on any device with government emails installed for safety reasons. |
Netherlands |
Partially Banned |
March 21, 2023, State Secretary Van Huffelen wrote a letter to the House of Representatives stating that the decision has been made and government officials will soon no longer be allowed to have TikTok on their work phones. The use of the app is already discouraged immediately, and employees are asked to delete it. |
New Zealand |
Partially Banned |
March 17, 2023, The Parliamentary Service Chief Executive, Rafael Gonzalez-Montero, has announced that the TikTok application will be removed from all devices with access to the parliamentary network. This decision was made based on the advice of cybersecurity experts and after discussions with colleagues across government and internationally. The decision was made due to security risks that are deemed unacceptable in the current environment of the New Zealand Parliament. |
Norway |
Partially Banned |
March 23, 2023, The Prime Minister, Kristine Kallset, stated the decision that no ministers, state secretaries, or political advisers should have Tiktok or Telegram on their work phones or tablets. The National Security Authority recommends that TikTok, a Chinese-owned app, and Telegram, a Russian-originated app, should not be installed on government devices connected to the organization's internal digital infrastructure or services. |
Taiwan |
Partially Banned |
December 5, 2022, The Ministry of Digital Affairs (MODA) had banned TikTok, Douyin and Xiaohongshu from public sector devices, including mobile phones, tablets, and computers as it has been listed as a product that endangers national information and communication security. |
United Kingdom |
Partially Banned |
March 16, 2023, The UK government has introduced a ban on the use of TikTok on government devices following a security review that identified potential vulnerabilities in government data from social media apps on devices. The ban applies to government corporate devices within all government departments. The ban does not extend to personal devices for government employees, ministers or the general public, and specific exemptions for the use of TikTok on government devices will be granted on a case-by-case basis for work purposes with security mitigations put in place. |
United States |
Partially Banned |
December 29, 2022, Joe Biden, 46th U.S. President, signed the No TikTok on Government Devices Act (S. 3455), a United States federal law that prohibits the use of TikTok on all federal government devices. It passed the Senate 68–29 on December 22, 2022 and the United States House of Representatives 225–201–1 on December 23, 2022. |
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About TikTok
TikTok, a popular video sharing app owned by Chinese technology company Bytedance, is facing bans due to concerns related to data privacy, security, and political censorship.