Georgia becomes latest to ban TikTok from state computers

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Thursday immediately banned the use of TikTok and two popular messaging applications from all computer devices controlled by Georgia's state government, saying the Chinese government may be able to access users' personal information.

Kemp also banned the messaging apps WeChat and Telegram, saying their control by Chinese and Russian companies poses similar risks.

“The state of Georgia has a responsibility to prevent any attempt to access and infiltrate its secure data and sensitive information by foreign adversaries such as the CCP,” Kemp wrote in a memo, using an acronym for the Chinese Communist Party. “As such, it is our duty to take action to preserve the safety and security of our state against the CCP, entities it controls and other foreign cyberthreats.”

Kemp cited comments by FBI Director Chris Wray earlier this month that China could use the app to collect data on its users that could be used for spying operations.

Kemp became at least the 12th Republican governor to take such an action, part of a wave that also includes calls for Congress to ban the use of the programs from federal government computers.

Some agencies swiftly took action. Within an hour, the state Department of Transportation posted a farewell video on TikTok to its 2,834 followers, saying “Follow us on Instagram, we will no longer be posting to TikTok! Thank you all for the engagement." The department had posted more than 80 videos since October 2021.

Andrew Isenhour, a spokesperson for Kemp, said guidelines to be issued by the Georgia Technology Authority later Thursday would include exceptions that would allow law enforcement agencies and prosecutors to access the platforms with special permission.

But the ban would also apply to state colleges...