Canada Orders TikTok Shutdown, Citing National Security Concerns

On Wednesday, Canada’s Minister of Innovation Francois-Philippe Champagne revealed that, due to national security concerns, the country banned TikTok from conducting business in Canada.

While Canadians are still able to use the app, Champagne warned users to be cautious, as it means TikTok will be closing its headquarters in Vancouver and Toronto.

He made it clear in a statement that “The government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content.”

Canadians should prioritize sound cyber hygiene and carefully consider the risks associated with social media use, such as the management, storage, access, and disclosure of personal information by third parties.

He claimed that a thorough security examination led to the decision to ban TikTok from operating in Canada.

When asked about the decision, Champagne explained that it was based on data and information gathered throughout the study as well as guidance from the security and intelligence community of Canada and other government partners.

Earlier, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) had sent a warning to all Canadians, asking them to remove TikTok from their devices.

In an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, former CSIS director David Vigneault stated, “Most people can say, ‘Why is it a big deal for a teenager now to have their data (on TikTok)?”. Well in five years, in 10 years, that teenager will be a young adult, will be engaged in different activities around the world.”

In the US, lawmakers came to the same decision. If ByteDance, the company that owns TikTok, doesn’t sell its US operations by January 2025, the app could be shut down completely in the US.

The US government took this action because they thought that TikTok could be pushed by the Chinese government to hand over information about Americans that it got from its users.