Amazon asks employees to delete TikTok 'due to security risks'

While the Chinese app can no longer be used by staff on their mobile phones, it can still be used on Amazon laptop browsers

Amazon told employees in an email on Friday to delete Chinese app TikTok from phones due to "security risks".

The email, confirmed by Amazon employees to The Independent and first reported by The New York Times, said employees must delete TikTok from any mobile device used to access Amazon email services.

While “mandatory removal” by Friday, 10 July was necessary to retain mobile access, the company still allowed employees to use the app from Amazon laptop browsers.

In a statement to The Independent, an Amazon spokesperson said the mandate was made in error and there was no change to the company's policy.

"This morning's email to some of our employees was sent in error. There is no change to our policies right now with regard to TikTok," the spokesperson said.

It comes just days after Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the US was "certainly looking at" a ban on TikTok and other Chinese social media apps amid concerns over national security.

Owned by Chinese tech company ByteDance, TikTok has come under increased scrutiny after it was caught accessing user clipboard data when running in the background, granting potential access to passwords and other private data.

In a statement to The Independent on Friday, a TikTok spokesperson said user security was of the utmost importance and that the company was fully committed to respecting the privacy of users.

"While Amazon did not communicate to us before sending their email, and we still do not understand their concerns, we welcome a dialogue so we can address any issues they may have and enable their team to continue participating in our community," the spokesperson said.

"We're proud that tens of millions of Americans turn to TikTok for entertainment, inspiration, and connection, including many of the Amazon employees and contractors who have been on the frontlines of this pandemic."

The increasing popularity of TikTok has being seen as both a national security threat due to its connections to the Chinese government and as a competitive threat to other US tech companies with video-based content like Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat.

In response to security concerns, the Beijing-based company has moved to distance itself from its Chinese operations by hiring a US-based CEO and withdrawing the app from Hong Kong following the enacting of new national security laws.

TikTok was banned in India in June, and two Republican senators in March introduced a bill to ban federal employees using the app on government-issued phones.

The US Navy banned it last year saying it represented a "cybersecurity threat", while the $1 billion acquisition of US app Musical.ly by TikTok owner ByteDance is under a national security review.