SAN FRANCISCO — Amazon has asked its employees to delete the Chinese-owned video app TikTok from their cellphones, citing “security risks,” according to a company email sent on Friday.
In the email, which was obtained by The New York Times, Amazon officials said that employees must delete the app from any devices that “access Amazon email.” Employees had to remove the app by Friday to remain able to obtain mobile access to their Amazon email, the note said. Amazon workers are still allowed to view TikTok from their laptop browser, the company added.
Amazon and TikTok did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
TikTok, which has been popular with young audiences in the United States, is owned by the Chinese tech company ByteDance. It has been under scrutiny in Washington for security reasons because of its ownership. Mike Pompeo, the Secretary of State, said on Monday that the Trump administration was considering blocking some Chinese apps, which he has called a threat to national security.
Late on Monday, TikTok also said it would withdraw from stores in Hong Kong, where a new national security law from China was enacted. The company said it would make it inoperable to users there within a few days. TikTok has also said that managers outside China call the shots on key aspects of its business, including rules about data.
