VVD will delete the party’s TikTok account. The party considers it no longer reasonable to use the popular app because of the spying risks. VVD has around 100,000 followers on TikTok.
The social media app of Chinese company Bytedance has been under fire for some time. There are fears that the Chinese government could monitor what TikTok users are doing.
At the end of February, the AIVD issued a warning alert of “increased risks of espionage” from managed apps in countries with an “aggressive cyber program against the Netherlands.” The intelligence service cited China, Russia, Iran and North Korea as examples. According to the AIVD, TikTok is a “recent example” of an app covered by the alert.
Late last month, the cabinet decided to ban TikTok from business phones of government officials for this reason. Large municipalities and provinces are also considering banning the app from work devices.
not even a minute gone
Among other things, VVD MP Queeny Rajkowski, who announced the departure of the TikTok party with a TikTok video this morning, says the account will be deleted next week at the latest. “First, we wanted to spread this video to tell our followers about the risks,” she explains. “So we’re not going to get rid of it right away. An awareness campaign first: we have a lot of followers, which means we can reach a lot of people.”
During last month’s state election campaign, VVD regularly posted videos on TikTok accounts of VVD, BBB (again, around 100,000 followers), GroenLinks (almost 50,000 followers), and Forum für Demokratie (almost 30,000 followers).
Rajkowski says that if the AIVD recommendation had come out sooner, VVD might have stopped using TikTok sooner, including the campaign. “But he was already busy.” Also, VVD did not want to take any risks and was initially informed by experts about the impact of social media on young people, among other things. A roundtable on the issue will be held in the House of Representatives today and experts will step up MPs.
Wider Research
Ultimately, the VVD hopes that the security risks of apps from countries like China will be studied more widely. “Now TikTok is being talked about openly and you can’t really get away with it, but we also want more information about other social media and spying dangers,” Rajkowski says.
Other parties have also spoken out against TikTok. Last week, D66 called for the app to be banned from lawmakers’ work phones to prevent “sensitive information from entering China unchecked.” ChristenUnie wants the app, which is especially popular with young people, to be banned altogether.
TikTok itself has always denied that Chinese authorities can access user data.
Source: NOS

Jason Jack is an experienced technology journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in computer science and engineering, he has a deep understanding of the latest technology trends and developments. He writes about a wide range of technology topics, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, software development, and cybersecurity.