Democrat and Republican parties warn staff not to use TikTok due to security concerns

As such, both major US political parties have warned staff not to use the app on their personal devices, according to CNN .
Representatives for both parties cited security as the reason for warning staff. "If you are using TikTok for campaign work, we recommend using a separate phone and account," the memo to DNC staff said.
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Both major US political parties have warned their staff not to use TikTok , the wildly popular social app that's owned and operated by the Chinese company ByteDance, CNN reports .

Representatives for both the Republican National Committee and Democratic National Committee cited security issues with TikTok as the reason for warning staff.

"The RNC has advised employees and stakeholders to not download the TikTok app on their personal devices," RNC national press secretary Mandi Merritt told CNN. Merritt pointed to "security concerns" as the reason for the advisory.

Similarly, the DNC warned staff back in December 2019 about TikTok.

"If you are using TikTok for campaign work, we recommend using a separate phone and account," a memo obtained by CNN said. The memo reportedly warned DNC staff about both TikTok and a Russian app named FaceApp .

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TikTok parent company ByteDance issued a statement to CNN regarding the warnings.

"We are fully committed to protecting our users' privacy and security," the statement said. "Under the leadership of our American CEO, along with our Chief Information Security Officer and Head of Safety, TikTok's growing US team works diligently to develop a best-in-class security infrastructure and uphold our Community Guidelines which prohibit misleading and inauthentic content and accounts."

Notably, ByteDance's TikTok has been cited as a security concern due to its country of origin, China.

President Trump's administration has warned that the app could potentially be outright banned in the United States. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that TikTok users risk their data ending up, "in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party."

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