On June 2, 2023, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council (FAR Council) issued an interim rule extending to federal contractors the existing government prohibition on having or using any device that also has any social networking service provided by ByteDance installed. The prohibition broadly applies to what is being called a ByteDance Covered Application which, for the moment, only includes TikTok but would include any re-naming of TikTok or any follow-on or similar technology regardless of the company that owns it.
The TikTok Interim Rule
The FAR rule and corresponding contract clause prohibit contractors from having or using a ByteDance Covered Application including TikTok on any information technology owned or managed by the government, or on any information technology used or provided by the contractor under a contract, including equipment provided by the contractor’s employees. The ban applies to devices used in the performance of a government contract regardless of whether the government, the contractor, or the contractor’s employee (for example, employee-owned devices that are part of an employer bring your own device (BYOD) program) own the device. In contrast, an employee’s personally owned cell phone or laptop that is not used in the performance of the contract is not subject to the prohibition.
What It means for Employees
Employees are required to un-install, remove and block, any ByteDance Covered Applications including TikTok from their company or government issued devices. If employees are using their own personal laptop or telephone in the performance of a contract, they must un-install, remove and block, any ByteDance Covered Applications including TikTok from such device