Trudeau government to ban TikTok's business operations

OTTAWA — The Trudeau government is ordering the “wind up” of TikTok’s business operations in Canada following a national security review, but it will not block Canadians’ access to the popular application. Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said in a statement Wednesday that the government is taking the drastic measure in response to “specific national security risks” related to ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of TikTok. The decision comes after the federal government that it had quietly ordered a national security review of TikTok in September 2023.

TikTok will have to cease its operations in Canada as a result and close its offices in Toronto and Vancouver. While the decision does not affect use of the application across the country, both Canada’s top spy and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have in recent months, citing privacy concerns. “When the director of CSIS is pointing out that TikTok poses a real threat to the data security of Canadians, I think Canadians need to listen,” Trudeau said in May.



“The concerns are that the data that TikTok collects on all of its users gets simply funnelled to the government of China and is used ...

potentially for nefarious purposes.” Wednesday’s decision is based on “information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners.” It will not block Canadians’ “personal choice” to access or create content on the app.

“It is important for Canadians to adopt good cybersecurity practices and assess the possible risks of using social media platforms and applications, including how their information is likely to be protected, managed, used and shared by foreign actors, as well as to be aware of which country’s laws apply,” Champagne’s statement said. “While Canada continues to welcome foreign direct investment, the government will act decisively when investments threaten our national security.” A spokesperson for Champagne would not provide details on what the national security risks are.

Earlier this year, the U.S. government passed legislation that would ban TikTok unless ByteDance sells its stake in the business.

The Canadian government has banned TikTok on its mobile devices since February 2023, after federal and provincial privacy commissioners launched an investigation into the application. TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It has denied it is under the Chinese government’s control and that Beijing could access users’ personal data.

The Chinese government, meanwhile, has denounced American-led efforts to clamp down on the app..