The European Commission is suspending Chinese short video-sharing app TikTok from its employees' corporate phones, EU industry chief Thierry Breton said on Thursday, citing a focus on cybersecurity.
Breton however declined to give further details at a news conference on whether there were any incidents involving TikTok.
"To increase its cybersecurity, the Commission's Corporate Management Board has decided to suspend the use of the TikTok application on its corporate devices and on personal devices enrolled in the Commission mobile device service," the EU executive said in a statement.
"This measure aims to protect the Commission against cybersecurity threats and actions which may be exploited for cyber-attacks against the corporate environment of the Commission," it said.
A spokesperson for the Commission said that no pressure from the United States was involved in the decision to ask its employees to remove TikTok from corporate phones.
TikTok said it was disappointed with the Commission decision, saying it was "misguided and based on fundamental misconceptions".
"We have contacted the Commission to set the record straight and explain how we protect the data of the 125 million people across the EU who come to TikTok every month," a spokesperson said.
Asked about a possible future similar ban on China's popular WeChat messaging application, a Commission spokesman said WeChat had not mentioned in these discussions.
Answering questions during the Commission's midday briefing, he also declined to detail how the Commission's technical services would implement and monitor the TikTok ban for its staff.
The Commission said security developments at other social media platforms will also be kept under constant review. - Reuters
