US lifts TikTok ban on government devices after ByteDance restructuring

The White House has formally lifted the ban on TikTok on US government devices after the Justice Department determined that the version operated by the platform’s new US joint venture is no longer covered by a 2022 prohibition targeting applications controlled by its Chinese parent company, ByteDance.The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in a memo dated Monday, rescinded a 2023 directive that barred the use of TikTok on government devices over national security concerns arising from its links to China.The move formally implements a July opinion from the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel concluding that the application operated by TikTok-usds-joint-venture-llc" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="183252" data-entity-type="organization">TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC no longer qualified as a “covered application” under the TikTok-on-government-devices-act" class="entity-link entity-topic" data-entity-id="183253" data-entity-type="topic">No TikTok on Government Devices Act.The opinion said US President Donald Trump had instructed that executive branch employees could download TikTok on official devices, although individual agencies retain discretion over its use and employees must comply with applicable workplace policies.The lifting of restrictions comes after TikTok’s transfer of primary control of its US operations from its Chinese parent ByteDance Ltd to a majority American-owned consortium in January, under an agreement orchestrated by the Trump administration.