Gov. Katie Hobbs (left) and AG Kris Mayes | AZGovernor.gov / AZag.gov
Gov. Katie Hobbs (left) and AG Kris Mayes | AZGovernor.gov / AZag.gov
Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) has signed an executive order banning TikTok from state devices.
"Within 30 days of this Order’s issuance, all State Agencies shall remove TikTok from State-owned and State-leased information technology and personal devices used for State work," said Hobbs' executive order. "Personal devices used for State work include, without limitation, all devices that access State systems, such as email."
Hobbs' announcement came on the same day Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) announced a ban of TikTok on her office's devices.
“Data security is paramount, especially for government agencies that handle sensitive information,” said Mayes in a press release. “We cannot risk the potential exposure of our data to foreign entities. Banning TikTok on state-owned devices is a necessary measure to protect our operations, and I urge other state agencies to take the same proactive steps to safeguard their data.”
On November 6 — two days prior to the November 8, 2022 General Election — then-gubernatorial candidate Hobbs participated in a TikTok live event with Olivia Julianna, director of politics and government for Gen Z for Change. According to the organization's website, Gen-Z for Change is "a nonprofit collective of Gen-Z activists leveraging the power of social media to drive progressive change."
Hobbs' executive order says, "the security and privacy of Arizonans’ data is of the utmost importance to the State of Arizona, and it is in the best interest of the State to perform due diligence and exercise due care in safeguarding that data to reduce cybersecurity risk."
"TikTok has been found to have security vulnerabilities that, if unresolved, could expose State-owned or State-leased devices to malicious actors creating potential security and privacy risks to State agencies and the systems and data the State is charged with protecting," said the order.
Hobbs was elected governor in the November 8, 2022 election, receiving 50% of the vote to Republican challenger Kari Lake's 49%. Hobbs served as Arizona Secretary of State from 2019-2023 and is a former member of the Arizona State Senate and Arizona House of Representatives.
She received a bachelor's degree in social work from Northern Arizona University and a master's degree in social work from Arizona State University. Hobbs and her husband, Patrick, have two children and reside in Phoenix.
Mayes was elected attorney general in the November 8, 2022 election, receiving 49.9% of the vote to Republican challenger Abe Hamadeh's 49.9%. According to unofficial results reported by the Arizona Secretary of State's office, only 511 separated the two candidates.
A former Republican, Mayes served on the Arizona Corporation Commission from 2003 to 2011. A native of Prescott, Mayes received her bachelor's degree and law degree from Arizona State University. Mayes lives in Phoenix with her daughter Hattie.
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