TikTok has announced plans to create a "Fusion Centre" in Dublin that will act as the company's first European security hub.
The social media firm is already in the process of recruiting 50 tech specialists for the centre, with a focus on acquiring "diverse" skill sets and experience of solving "converged security challenges".
The Dublin facility will fall under the leadership of TikTok's US centre in Washington DC as it works to build out its on-platform threat discovery system. This will include the delivery of "next-generation" cyber-threat monitoring, as well as assembling cyber investigations and establishing groups to tackle digital crime.
The establishment of the Fusion Centre is further evidence of TikTok's ongoing investment in Europe and underscores the strategic importance of Ireland to its global operations, according to the company. The country is already home to a number of other critical functions for the social media firm, including its EMEA Trust and Safety Hub and its European data and privacy teams.
"I'm really pleased TikTok has chosen Dublin as the location for its first regional Fusion Centre, creating over 50 new jobs," said Leo Varadkar, Ireland's Tánaiste (deputy head of government). "This new centre will detect and respond to critical incidents as they happen, and will help improve online safety for TikTok users worldwide.
"This announcement underlines the company's continued commitment to our country and will allow it to continue to benefit from our rich and highly skilled talent pool. I wish the team at TikTok the very best in their expansion plans."
TikTok will look to tap into Ireland's "strong talent pool" as it adds more security roles in the coming months, according to the company's global chief security officer Roland Cloutier.
"There's a strong university system, and there's this strong international talent following in Ireland that brings people from all over the world to Ireland," he said. "It's really impressive the number of resources we've been able to find."
