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Tik Tok

(25 Posts)
62Granny Thu 16-Mar-23 19:10:37

I will admit I don't know a lot about this platform, I thought it was mainly silly videos and people putting bunny ears etc. on their photos, feel free to correct me if I am wrong.
If that is the case why do people need this on their "work" phones.
I say this as you will have heard that MP 's and I presume their staff and other Whitehall staff being told to remove the app from their phones.

crazyH Thu 16-Mar-23 19:16:25

My teenage grandchildren are on TikTok….they occasionally show me some of the silly stuff on there..😂

MerylStreep Thu 16-Mar-23 19:49:18

62granny
This article explains why politicians are using TikTok.
They are still using the app on their private phones.

www.politicshome.com/thehouse/article/meet-the-new-generation-of-tik-tok-mps

PamelaJ1 Thu 16-Mar-23 23:48:29

Thanks for the link.
I got the impression that employees of the government were using their phones for social purposes.

nanna8 Thu 16-Mar-23 23:53:48

Instinctively I don’t like it. My granddaughter downloaded it for me and I kept it about 5 minutes.

dotpocka Fri 17-Mar-23 00:05:11

www.independent.co.uk/tech/tiktok-ban-why-safe-dangers-b2292200.html
search
why would you want china in your house it is owned by the
abcnews.go.com/Business/tiktok-facing-bans-us-countries/story?id=97528047
basically i am for free speach this is not that

FannyCornforth Fri 17-Mar-23 02:17:03

The worry is that TikTok is data harvesting.
TikTok have made assurances that they ‘do not share information with the Communist Party’.
I would not be so sure.
It would be an ingenious way of infiltration and other malign things, especially with the hold that TikTok has over children and young people.

NotSpaghetti Fri 17-Mar-23 06:55:38

Here's the update on *Meryl's" link and the ban:
www.politicshome.com/news/article/tiktok-banned-government-devices.

As other articles have said the links with China means the data location is a worry as well as the "soft power" of messaging (what is "fed" to people via algorithms) that are the most problematic.

MerylStreep Fri 17-Mar-23 07:20:19

Heavens to murgatroyde 😱 the Chinese gathering data.

Allsorts Fri 17-Mar-23 07:32:27

This is the only site I access socially, probably miss a lot but from what I hear people share and know too much, so I will happily miss out. Cannot understand workers constantly accessing phone during working times, we would have been fired.

MerylStreep Fri 17-Mar-23 07:44:48

Allsorts
It’s not all bad.

www.google.co.uk/search?q=TikTok+%2B+cats+do+funny+things&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-gb&client=safari#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:79485a19,vid:wV5dxkroIjQ

Desiree1153 Sun 19-Mar-23 11:26:27

I use TikTok solely for BookTok to get book recommendations and find it works for that very well. Not really interested in the silly videos and mark them as ‘not interested’.

grandtanteJE65 Sun 19-Mar-23 11:52:50

The worry is not really about TIK TOK data harvesting - after all who isn't in the cyber world?

TIK TOK is said (proved?) to be run by China's equivalent of MI5, and that is why governments have suddenly woken up to the fact that it probably is not such a good idea that politicians and other civil servants can access it from their business phones.

TerriBull Sun 19-Mar-23 12:56:56

I read somewhere, what is aimed at Chinese youth through Tik Tok is of a much higher calibre and far more educational than what is on offer to western youth, which is altogether far more dumbed down.

HousePlantQueen Sun 19-Mar-23 12:59:21

Wherever I have worked there has been a policy of no downloads to office IT systems other than anything sent and approved by management. It really shouldn't have to be said that TikTok, owned by the Chinese State, shouldn't be downloaded to Civil Service or, even worse, Ministerial phones.

Scottiebear Sun 19-Mar-23 13:17:55

There should be absolutely no need for anyone to access it during work hours. And if someone uses phone for both work and personal matters it should be removed from the phone. And also from all work phones and computers.

HannahLoisLuke Sun 19-Mar-23 14:04:13

When TikTok first appeared I was suspicious of a Chinese owned social media site as the business has to report everything to the government. Now it seems my suspicions were probably justified but is anybody listening? Not a chance!

HannahLoisLuke Sun 19-Mar-23 14:08:11

Wouldn’t surprise me to learn in a few years time that our young people have all been brainwashed by using this platform and are now puppets of the Chinese communist party. Am I joking? I hope so.

4allweknow Sun 19-Mar-23 15:42:51

My GD is nearly 11 years old. Constantly her parents are finding out yet another friend her age is on TikTok. They are supposed to be at least 16 to subscribe. Parents just don't take cyber security seriously, anything to be in with the in crowd as the saying went. See no purpose in it myself.

PaperMonster Sun 19-Mar-23 20:35:09

It’s 13 to subscribe to Tik Tok. I have a 12 year old who has it. She has strict security on her profile and it’s not a case of not taking it seriously tbh. I’m aware of the content she sees. I’d rather that than be a parent who bans it - I’ve seen some horrible consequences of being too restrictive with IT.

Oreo Sun 19-Mar-23 21:01:56

MerylStreep

Heavens to murgatroyde 😱 the Chinese gathering data.

😂 shocking ain’t it?

There’s no such thing as large private businesses in China, Tik
Tok will do as they’re told to do by the Chinese government.

Shinamae Sun 19-Mar-23 21:08:49

Jeremy Vine’s tik-toks are actually ridiculous…. He seems to think they’re funny..😬

MerylStreep Mon 20-Mar-23 11:59:38

Shinamae
The words funnyand Jeramy Vine should never be in the same sentence 😱

AmberSpyglass Mon 20-Mar-23 12:02:11

There is some genuinely excellent journalism and informative videos on there. Depending on your job, I can see it being invaluable - but much the same as any social media platform for personal use, it doesn’t need to be on a work device.

lyleLyle Tue 21-Mar-23 15:05:51

Tik Tok is actually a major media platform now, and it isn’t just silly videos. The diversity of content makes it a lucrative platform for content makers, but also obviously advertisers. You can find incredibly helpful information there. You can find incredibly detrimental disinformation there. You can laugh and learn. Of course it can be influential; all media is. Social media in particular only thrives at the level it does because of influencers. Tik tok has the youth, especially in the US, tightly in its grasp because the youth are the future. So it isn’t exactly shocking that politicians are adapting to this platform in and of itself. It’s only shocking that they would allow a known Chinese government tool to operate on government issued hardware.

Having said that, whether it’s China, western businesses/companies, or other governments, please understand that the point of allowing free access to any platform is to gather data on its users. The price you pay for access is your data. Nothing in this world is free. Nothing about any of this should be shocking.