Des Moines, IA- Governor Kim Reynolds has banned state employees from using TikTok on state-owned devices, and state agencies are prohibited from owning a TikTok account.
Radio Iowa reports that TikTok is a Chinese-owned social media app. It has been downloaded 220 million times in the United States.
Reynolds calls TikTok a national security risk. Reynolds says the safety of Iowans is her number one priority and that includes cybersecurity.
The director of the FBI has warned the Chinese government could use the app to collect data on Americans.
South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem issued an executive order on TikTok at the end of November and eight other Republican governors have announced similar moves since then.
Florida Republican senator Marco Rubio introduced a bill in the US Senate Tuesday, that would ban the use of TikTok or any social media company under the control of Russia or China nationwide.
A spokesperson for TikTok said these policies are based on unfounded, politically charged falsehoods about the app.
The Chinese company that owns TikTok had announced back in June that they would be moving all data from US users to servers owned by a company based in Texas.
