(The Center Square) – The Georgia legislature has proposed legislation banning state employees from using social media platforms controlled by a foreign adversary on their state devices.
Senate Bill 93 would apply the ban to state-owned devices used by the Legislature and the Judiciary, and to K-12 schools statewide. It would prevent employees from using TikTok.
TikTok is coming under increasing scrutiny across the country for its alleged connection to the Chinese Communist Party. According to lawmakers, TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is required under Chinese law to provide the app’s data to CCP.
“This wasn’t supposed to be a controversial piece legislationSenate Majority Committee Chairman Jason Anavitarte, R-Dallas, said in an announcement. “Numerous cybersecurity and national intelligence officials have identified TikTok as a significant espionage threat.
“The federal government is considering legislation that will ban TikTok statewide, and we will do our part in Georgia,” Anavitarte added. “Even without the malware concerns, government employees and students should not use social media sites like TikTok while at work or school.”
In December, Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, banned TikTok, Telegram and WeChat from state devices. SB 93 would also require the director of the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency to maintain a list of “foreign adversaries” and post it on its website.
The legislation would not prevent Georgians from using TikTok on their personal devices.
Separately, US Senator Michael Bennet, D-Colorado, asked Apple and Google CEOs to remove TikTok from their companies’ app stores, citing national security concerns.
