Cybersecurity expert urges Government to ban staff from using TikTok

Ronan Murphy, founder and executive chairman of cybersecurity company, Smarttech, believes the Government should follow the lead of the European Commission

The European Commission (EC) confirmed last week it was banning staff from using the app on all work mobile phones and devices, and on any personal devices on which the Commission's apps or emails are accessed. File Picture: AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato, File

The Irish Government should follow the lead of the European Commission and ban the use of short-form video-hosting app TikTok on Government mobile phones and devices, a leading cybersecurity expert has said.

The European Commission (EC) confirmed last week it was banning staff from using the app on all work mobile phones and devices, and on any personal devices on which the Commission's apps or emails are accessed.

The EC said it was taking the measure "to protect the commission against cybersecurity threats and actions which may be exploited for cyber-attacks against the corporate environment of the commission." Commission staff have until March 15 to comply with the move.

While harvesting user data is the norm for social media companies, the soaring popularity of TikTok, which is Chinese-owned, has made Western governments increasingly concerned about exactly where user data from the app ends up, and how it may be used.

Last September, the Data Protection Commission (DPC), the Irish watchdog which regulates TikTok and other apps on behalf of the European Union, began an investigation into “transfers by TikTok of personal data to China and TikTok’s compliance with the GDPR’s requirements for transfers of personal data to third countries”.  The DPC investigation is ongoing.

'Leaving the fox into the chicken coop'

Ronan Murphy, founder and executive chairman of cybersecurity company, Smarttech, believes the European Commission’s decision was the correct one, and that Ireland should follow suit. He said that while the app may not necessarily pose a risk right now, it does represent a potential risk going forward.

He likened its use by influential politicians in Europe to “leaving the fox into the chicken coop.” 

A device might be secure at this moment in time, but that is subject to change at any given moment, depending on who decides to update what software.

“These are systems that can access the back end of your devices and should whoever controls that software have specific motives that they want to execute on a people or on an individual or on a country, they have the ability to do that.” 

Mr Murphy added that the European Commission were "categorically correct" to ban the app. Minister for Justice Simon Harris has said the Government is seeking fresh advice on the matter.

A spokesperson for the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications said the National Cybersecurity Centre (NCSC) does not comment on the technical measures in place to protect official devices and communications.

TikTok has consistently disputed accusations that it shares any of the data it gathers from its users with the Chinese government, or that it would do so if asked. ByteDance, the firm which owns TikTok, said it was "disappointed" with the European Commission’s banning of its app, describing the move as being based on "fundamental misconceptions."