📋 Tender Overview
In early March the Ministry of Justice and Public Security asked the National Security Authority NSM to assess whether measures or advice should be introduced related to the use of the Chinese-owned app TikTok and the app Telegram which has Russian origin on service units. On Monday Minister of Justice and Public Security Emilie Enger Mehl received the security assessment from NSM related to these apps.NSM considers that TikTok or Telegram should not be installed on public employee service units that are connected to the companys internal digital infrastructure or services.They consider that this should also apply to employees in the private sector who are subject to the Security Act in whole or in part.Minister of Justice and Public Security Emilie Enger Mehl supports the advice from NSM. It also means that political leadership and employees of ministries and their subordinate businesses are discouraged from having Tiktok and Telegram on service units.If there is an official need for TikTok or Telegram NSM recommends that the application be installed and used on a separate device reserved for this type of purpose and that is not connected to the companys internal systems.- I support NSMs assessment. Therefore today the Ministry of Justice and Public Security is going to send letters to all ministries advising against having TikTok and Telegram on service units. If there is an official need to have these apps it should be on a separate unit that is not connected to the companys digital systems says Minister of Justice and Public Security Emilie Enger Mehl.The Ministry of Justice and Public Security also asks the ministries to follow up the recommendations vis-vis their respective subordinate agencies.In its open threat assessment the intelligence service points to Russia and China as the foremost threat actors against Norwegian security interests. They also point out that social media is a favorable arena for threat actors and others who want to influence us through disinformation and fake news says Mehl.NSM considers that there is a high risk if the TikTok or Telegram applications are installed on service units that have access to the companys internal digital infrastructure or services. In this context a service unit means mobile phones tablets or personal computers that are paid for by the employer.Other apps such as Facebook Instagram and Snapchat also collect a lot of information. NSM points to the challenge of possible commercial resale of such data. Everyone who uses social media should therefore be aware of what information they share and the settings they have on their phone says Minister of Justice and Public Security Mehl.
