Britain on Thursday banned the use of TikTok on official government devices, adding to similar restrictions imposed by allies in Canada, the European Union and the United States.CNN reported.

The social media app is not widely used by UK officials, according to a government statement, but the move reflects concerns about TikTok’s ties to China through its parent company, ByteDance, and the possibility that the Chinese government could pressure the company to hand over users’ personal information.

“This is a proportionate measure based on risks specific to government arrangements,” UK Cabinet Secretary Oliver Dowden told MPs.

In a later statement, TikTok expressed disappointment at the decision.

“We believe this ban is based on a fundamental misunderstanding and is driven by broader geopolitics, in which TikTok, and our millions of users in the UK, have no role,” a spokesperson said, according to CNN. . “We remain committed to working with the government to address any concerns, but we must be judged on the facts and treated the same as our competitors.”

The British move came a day after company officials said the Biden administration had demanded that TikTok’s Chinese owners give up their stake in the popular video app or face a possible US ban.

In August 2020, then-President Donald Trump signed an executive order giving Americans 45 days to stop doing business with ByteDance, stating that China’s technology operations could be used for spying.

In December, the US House Administrative Committee banned TikTok on all mobile devices managed by the House “because of a number of security risks”. Additionally, more than 20 US states have banned TikTok on government devices.

In late February, the White House gave government agencies 30 days to ensure they don’t own TikTok on federal devices and systems.

Days later, the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee voted to give President Joe Biden powers to ban TikTok.

The company has stated that it is voluntarily working to address security concerns by taking technical and bureaucratic measures to isolate US and EU user data from its global operations. It also said that it had not received any requests from the Chinese government for user information and would reject any such requests.