TikTok is Now BANNED on all State of Iowa Devices

There are a lot of TikTok trends. Some fun. Some dumb. Some are downright dangerous. But none of them will be viewed on a State of Iowa-owned device any time soon.

Effective today, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has banned the use of TikTok on any government device. Why? According to a press release from Gov. Reynolds sent to this station, it's due to security concerns with the Chinese-owned social media platform. In addition, state agencies may not subscribe to or own a TikTok account.

In her press release, the governor was quoted as saying,

It is clear that TikTok represents a national security risk to our country and I refuse to subject the citizens of Iowa to that risk.

She went on to say,

They trust us with their personal and confidential information and we will take every step possible to protect it, including from the Chinese government. The safety of Iowans is my number one priority and that includes their cybersecurity.

The governor isn't alone in saying no more to TikTok on state-owned devices. Iowa officially joins Maryland, South Carolina, neighboring South Dakota, Texas, and Alabama to ban the app. In fact, Alabama also announced its ban today.

While this ban does not impact Iowans on their personal devices, there has been a lot of chatter in Washington about a full-blown, nationwide ban on the social media platform recently.

The Governor’s directive went into effect immediately. There's no word on what the penalty might be for any state employee caught with the app on their phone.