Senate Unanimously Votes to Ban TikTok From All Government Phones

• The Senate on Wednesday voted to ban TikTok from all government devices for a second time.
• Lawmakers fear the social-media app can be used to spy on American users.
• TikTok said these concerns largely stem from misinformation and “unfounded falsehoods.”

The Senate on Wednesday unanimously approved a bill that bans federal employees from downloading or using TikTok on government devices, citing national security concerns about the Chinese-owned social media app.

The bill still has to pass in the House and be signed by President Joe Biden before it becomes law.

The “No TikTok on Government Devices Act,” sponsored by GOP Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, would “prohibit certain individuals from downloading or using TikTok on any device issued by the United States or a government corporation.”

TikTok, run by Chinese company Bytedance, has for years been under scrutiny from lawmakers concerned that it may share information about US users with the Chinese government. The Senate also passed the same ban in 2020, but the measure did not move forward in the House.

In a statement to Insider on Wednesday, TikTok called Hawley’s bill “a proposal which does nothing to advance U.S. national security interests.”

“We hope that rather than continuing down that road, he will urge the Administration to move forward on an agreement that would actually address his concerns,” TikTok said.