Guelph police officers, Guelph General Hospital staff and city workers wll no longer be able to use the social media app TikTok on work devices.
The police service has confirmed a ban, while the city is temporarily restricting access to the app on work phones.
"After a careful review we have decided to follow the lead of other levels of government, and the City of Guelph, and have banned TikTok from all GPS devices," said police spokesperson Scott Tracey in an email to GuelphToday.
He confirmed the police service doesn't have a TikTok account of its own.
The City of Guelph said it has taken a "precautionary approach" to restrict TikTok on corporate devices for 45 days, after completing an internal review.
"TikTok’s data collection methods provide considerable concern for the City of Guelph," said Adam Fischer, Guelph's general manager of information technology.
"We’re choosing to take a precautionary approach until further information becomes available and we can confidently make an informed and evidence-based decision."
The city's policy states the 630 devices it has issued to staff are to be used for city business, though incidental personal use is permitted.
"As long as it is not excessive, does not impact work productivity, or interfere with the performance of an employee's duties," Fischer said.
The federal government first put a ban in place on all government devices a week ago.
"Following a review of TikTok, the Chief Information Officer of Canada determined that it presents an unacceptable level of risk to privacy and security," Mona Fortier, the president of the treasury board, said in a statement Feb. 27.
Fortier added the ban is more of a precaution due to concerns about the "legal regime that governs the information collected from mobile devices."
The University of Guelph said it is monitoring the situation.
"At present, there are no plans to modify our social media platforms,” the university said in an email.
On Thursday, Conestoga College banned the app from all college-owned laptops, desktop computers, tablets and mobile phones. As well as TikTok accounts associated with college departments and academic schools will be suspended.
