The ban came after advice from Australian intelligence and security agencies.

Concerns over TikTok relate to the potential for data to be harvested and accessed by the Chinese government under national laws that can compel companies to hand over information.

The move, confirmed by Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, follows the United States, Canada and the European Union prohibiting government employees from having TikTok on work-issued devices.

In a statement, Mr Dreyfus said "exemptions will only be granted on a case-by-case basis and with appropriate security mitigations in place".

China's foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said they have made a diplomatic protest to Australia.

"China always believes that digital security should not be used as a tool to suppress foreign companies in an overstretch of the concept of national security and abuse of state power," she said.

Ms Ning urged Australia "to earnestly observe the rules of market economy and the principle of fair competition, and provide a fair, transparent and non-discriminatory environment for Chinese companies".

Earlier on Tuesday, reports also emerged of a Beijing invite for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

South China Morning Post reported on Tuesday that Beijing has issued an "in principle" invitation for Mr Albanese to visit later this year.

Ms Ning said she had "nothing to share" on questions surrounding the visit but added that a "healthy and stable development of China-Australia relations serves the common interests of both countries and the peoples of the two countries."

Mr Albanese has previously said he was open to visiting China.

There are expectations that the Prime Minister will visit China this year after cooling relations and visits from state and federal representatives, including Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews.

The opposition, meanwhile, has welcomed the government decision on TikTok but its cybersecurity spokesman James Paterson said it didn't go far enough to protect Australians.

"Now that this risk is being addressed, we must urgently turn our attention to the broader cyber security and foreign interference threat posed by TikTok to the millions of other Australian users," he said in a statement.

Public Service Minister Katy Gallagher said the decision concerned government-issued devices but people needed to familiarise themselves with risks that certain apps and social media carried.

"There is a whole lot of information that people can access about that if they choose to, online through e-safety and through some other government websites," she said.

TikTok Australia and New Zealand preempted the decision, calling it a move "driven by politics".

Its general manager, Lee Hunter, said the company was "extremely disappointed by the decision".

App owner ByteDance denies its user data can be supplied to Beijing.

READ MORE: