France has banned not only TikTok from government phones, but Facebook and Netflix, too. Could this be a tipping point for big tech? Plus, AI-generated pictures of the pope signal a new type of viral image

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Government workers in the UK, US, Canada and European Union (the list will have grown by the time you read this) are banned from installing TikTok on their phones.

On Friday, France joined that list, preventing its civil servants from installing TikTok – and everything else. From the government’s press release (original in French):

After an analysis of the issues, in particular security, the government has decided to ban the downloading and installation of recreational applications on professional telephones provided to public officials from now on.

Recreational applications do not have sufficient levels of cybersecurity and data protection to be deployed on government equipment. This ban applies immediately and uniformly. Exemptions may be granted on an exceptional basis …

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Fears for data security lie behind recent government bans on the Chinese-owned app, but zombie scrolling has health dangers too

As of this moment, government officials in 11 countries are forbidden to run TikTok on their government-issued phones. The countries include the US, Canada, Denmark, Belgium, the UK, New Zealand, Norway, France, the Netherlands and Poland. In addition, European Commission and European parliament staff were required to delete the app. This raises two questions.

First, why were politicians and senior officials in democracies scrolling like zombies through dance crazes, daft pet videos, feeling “bonita” and things you can do with smudged lipstick?

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Move by Greater London Authority comes after Chinese-owned app was blocked on UK parliamentary devices

London City Hall staff will no longer have TikTok on their devices in the latest ban imposed on the Chinese-owned social media app over security concerns.

The Greater London Authority (GLA) said the rule was implemented as it takes information security “extremely seriously”.

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Move follows UK government’s decision to ban Chinese-owned video-sharing app

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Parliament is to ban the Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok from “all parliamentary devices and the wider parliamentary network”, citing the need for cybersecurity.

The move goes further than the ban last week of the app on government mobile phones and devices, covering the whole parliamentary network. That means that MPs and parliamentary staff who continue to have TikTok installed on personal devices will find the service blocked if they try to access it over parliamentary wifi.

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Move comes after UK government bans app on government devices over fears of data being accessed by Chinese state

The BBC has urged its staff to delete the Chinese-own social media app TikTok from corporate mobile phones.

Guidance to BBC staff circulated on Sunday said: “We don’t recommend installing TikTok on a BBC corporate device unless there is a justified business reason. If you do not need TikTok for business reasons, TikTok should be deleted.”

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UK has removed app over concerns data can be monitored by Chinese state, but public remain vulnerable

TikTok is wildly popular, with more than 1 billion people consuming its short video posts around the world. But the app is less favoured by politicians in key markets such as the US and UK, where it has been banned from government-issued phones over security fears. We answer your questions about why TikTok has become a lightning rod for suspicion of Chinese state espionage – and whether nationwide bans are likely.

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Exclusive: Voiceprint program used by millions of Australians to access data held by government agencies shown to have a serious security flaw

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A voice identification system used by the Australian government for millions of people has a serious security flaw, a Guardian Australia investigation has found.

Centrelink and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) both give people the option of using a “voiceprint”, along with other information, to verify their identity over the phone, allowing them to then access sensitive information from their accounts.

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A paper expanding on greater ability to intervene during hacks – especially on private companies – causes alarm among Coalition and Greens

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Labor could face Senate difficulties if it tries to dramatically expand the government’s powers to directly intervene in companies’ IT systems during cyber-attacks.

Under existing laws – which were controversial when introduced by the former Coalition government – the Australian Signals Directorate has the ability to “step in” as a “last resort” in some emergency situations, but only for critical infrastructure assets.

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PM under pressure to follow EU and US in taking step over fears Chinese-owned app poses cybersecurity risk

Rishi Sunak has been urged to ban government officials from using TikTok in line with moves by the EU and US, amid growing cybersecurity fears over China.

Officials in Europe and the US have been told to limit the use of the Chinese-owned social video app over concerns that data can be accessed by Beijing.

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Employees given until 15 March to comply with measure amid concerns over app’s Chinese ownership

The EU’s executive body has banned its thousands of staff from using TikTok, as governments and officials become increasingly concerned over the company’s data practices and Chinese ownership.

The European Commission sent an email to employees ordering them to delete the app from all work phones and devices, and any personally owned ones that use the commission’s apps and email. Employees have until 15 March to comply.

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