TikTok App Banned by Amazon in US, Employees Asked to Delete Chinese Application From Smartphones: Report

New York, July 10: E-commerce giant Amazon on Friday asked its employees in the United States to delete Chinese-owned video app TikTok from their smartphones. According to a report by the New York Times, Amazon cited "security risks" while asking employees to uninstall TikTok app. However, the employees are allowed to watch TikTok video on their laptops. No official statement was released by TikTok in this regard at the time of filing this copy. TikTok to be banned in US? America is 'Certainly Looking at' Banning Chinese Social Media Apps, Including TikTok, Says Mike Pompeo.

"Due to security risks, the TikTok app is no longer permitted on mobile devices that access Amazon email. If you have TikTok on your device, you must remove it by 10-Jul to retain mobile access to Amazon email," Amazon told employees, as reported by the New York Times. TikTok, which has been popular with young audiences in the United States, is owned by the Chinese tech company ByteDance.

TikTok App Banned by Amazon:

The app has been repeatedly criticized by US leaders "of being a threat to national security because of its ties to China". Recently, US President Donald Trump said that a ban on TikTok was "one of many" options he was considering to retaliate against China over its handling of the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, which has affected nearly 3 million people in the US and claimed more than 130,000 lives.

India has already banned 59 Chinese apps, including TikTok, saying these apps opened the way for "elements hostile to national security and defence" to exploit them to "ultimately impinge upon the sovereignty and integrity of India".

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 10, 2020 11:22 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).