Hawaii lawmaker seeking to ban TikTok on state devices
By Tom George
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HAWAII (KITV) — Amid security concerns over the popular social media and video app TikTok, several states have moved to ban the platform from state-run devices.
Now, Hawaii Rep. Gene Ward (R-Hawaii Kai) wants our state to follow suit.
Ward says he’s concerned about reports of TikTok’s parent company ByteDance and its connection to the Chinese government and its ability to gain personal information from the app.
Ward calls the app ‘digital fentanyl’ and says in addition to being addicting for social media users, he’s worried about the security risks. “For national security, look, we are the epicenter of the defense of the nation in the Pacific, we should be one of the leaders in this, so I think we’re playing catch up quite frankly,” he says.
The bill would only apply to Hawaii government-owned computers and devices, and would not ban anyone in the general public from using app, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you shouldn’t be concerned.
“Although there’s supposed to be a firewall between it’s western and Chinese counterparts even recent reports have suggested that officials in China have been given access to some of the information on TikTok servers,” says KITV4 tech expert Ryan Ozawa.
One opponent of the bill is Rep. Jeanne Kapela (D-Naalehu, Volcano, Pahala). The Big Island lawmaker is the youngest female member of the House and regularly uses TikTok posting dance videos and behind the scenes creative videos to highlight her work at the Capitol.
“People seem to really engage and the reality too is that young people want to get involved in politics they want to get involved and they want to see someone that looks like them talks like them that has energy like them,” she says.
Kapela says she believes the bill is political posturing that unfairly singles out TikTok. But she does believe more education and safeguards are needed as we navigate a changing digital world.
“It’s not digital fentanyl, it’s the opportunity for people to connect, and at the end of the day, I think we need more opportunities for people to connect and protections for them to be able to do so,” Kapela says.
Ward is planning to introduce his bill at the start of session. As a Republican in a Democratic-supermajority legislature, it’s still unclear if the bill will gain any traction, but he hopes other lawmakers will get on board, especially if new security concerns about TikTok come to light.
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