London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jul 21, 2025

Beyond TikTok, Dutch tell government staff to uninstall Chinese, Russian apps

Beyond TikTok, Dutch tell government staff to uninstall Chinese, Russian apps

Staffers can’t use apps from countries with ‘offensive cyber program’ against the Netherlands.
The Dutch government issued new guidance Tuesday for its officials to uninstall apps from countries that wage an "offensive cyber program" against the Netherlands, including China, Russia, North Korea and Iran.

The move is a response to questions by Dutch lawmakers about whether the Chinese-owned video-sharing app TikTok should be banned from work phones. Government officials were told in November not to use TikTok for government work, but formal restrictions on the app — like the ban that EU institutions issued in February — were not in place yet.

In their new guidance, the Dutch are going beyond TikTok.

"The first step is to immediately dissuade officials of the national government to install or use apps on mobile work devices from companies originating from countries with an offensive cyber program against the Netherlands and/or against Dutch interests," Minister of Digitization Alexandra van Huffelen wrote in a letter to lawmakers, seen by POLITICO. The guidance is based on advice from the country's intelligence services.

A second letter, sent from the intelligence services to the minister of interior affairs, detailed which countries the order affects and why the measure was deemed necessary. "In case an application is managed in a country with an offensive cyber program against the Netherlands or Dutch interests, there's an increased risk of espionage," the letter, dated February 23 and seen by POLITICO, reads. "Examples of countries with such an offensive cyber program are Russia, China, Iran and North Korea."

Intelligence services in those countries have "the intent and capacity" to spy on the Netherlands, it adds.

The current recommendation is only a first step, as the Dutch government wants to roll out IT infrastructure in which only apps that are vetted in advance can be downloaded and used by staff. There's a possible exemption for when an app is needed to carry out vital government tasks, like a criminal investigation or intelligence gathering.

"Neither TikTok nor our parent company are Chinese-owned, nor controlled by any state or government," a TikTok spokesperson said in response to the Dutch guidance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
×