Senate passes bill preventing federal employees from using TikTok, citing Chinese influence concerns

The U.S. Senate recently passed a bill to prevent federal employees from using TikTok on government-issued devices.

The “No TikTok on Government Devices Act,” sponsored by Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) and others, cites concerns regarding the social media app’s origin: China.

Last night the Senate voted to ban TikTok on all government devices. Now the House should follow pic.twitter.com/25oopZaads

— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) December 15, 2022

[RELATED: Are US leaders tough on China? One study points to a partisan divide.]

“Last night’s legislation is vitally important, because never has the security threat to the American people from the Chinese Communist Party been more grave, and never has the determination on the part of the Chinese communist party to leverage every possible asset, every possible platform to gather personal information from the American people been more serious than it is now,” Hawley said in a video posted on his Twitter account. 

Earlier this year, it was reported that the Chinese government hacked into at least six state governments. 

Hawley’s proposed legislation aims to prevent this from happening in the future. 

The Senate unanimously voted to move the bill to the U.S. House of Representatives, who have until next week to vote on it before the 117th Congress’ session ends. 

[RELATED: Lawmakers want DoD to cut ties with Confucius Institutes]

Campus Reform continues to report on the dangers of China’s influence within the higher education system.

At the beginning of the Fall 2022 semester, Congressman Greg Murphy (R-NC) proposed legislation that “would pressure private colleges and universities to refuse endowments from Chinese-owned companies posing a threat to America’s national security,” Campus Reform reported. 

Campus Reform also reported on universities’ foreign contribution filings.

According to data from the US Department of Education, “colleges and universities amassed a total of $1.3 billion in contracts and gifts from foreign sources, including $337 million from foreign governments” in 2021 alone. 

Campus Reform reached out to each party mentioned and this article will be updated accordingly.

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