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Popular social media app TikTok might get banned in the US, as both significant political parties of the country supported the ban. As reported by The Verge on September 17, 2024, the ban will take place if ByteDance does not sell the app. For the unversed, ByteDance is a Chinese company that owns the video-sharing app.
The social media platform had previously faced concerns regarding its data security policies. As per BBC, US lawmakers still have the same concern, that the Chinese government could force ByteDance to hand over the data of its users.
Meanwhile, the news about the possible ban didn't sit right with several Americans, who use the platform regularly. Here are some popular responses found on the app, after a TikToker, @b.thedonn, expressed her frustration upon learning about the possible ban in January 2025.
The video went quite viral, as it garnered more than 4,000 comments and 35,000 likes since it was uploaded. A user commented under the post:
"They taking TikTok away because we learning a lot that they don't want us to know."
Many other users also claimed that the app was a source of information for them.
Joe Biden signed a bill in April approving the ban of the Chinese app TikTok, until certain conditions were met
The short-form video-sharing app is quite popular in the United States, with millions of regular users. Thus, news about its possible ban in January 2025 has created chaos among the users. President Biden already started the process of its ban in April, after getting approval from Congress.
Former President Donald Trump also wanted to get rid of this app back in 2020, when he was in power. However, as per a BBC News report from September 2024, Trump criticized the current step taken by the Democrats and Biden. According to Trump, such a restriction on this Chinese app might unfairly benefit Facebook.
According to the current legislation, which became relevant after Biden signed the bill on April 24, ByteDance has nine months, till January 19, 2025, to make a decision regarding selling the video-sharing app to a non-Chinese company.
Meanwhile, the company also went to court to contest the legislation passed. The suit was filed in May, but according to the September 16 report by BBC News, it might take years to come to a conclusion. Attorney Alex Berengaut, representing the Chinese app, wrote in the filing:
"The government cites no evidence of this supposed Chinese control—and its contention is flatly wrong."
As for the bill that Joe Biden signed in April, it restricts the update and maintenance of apps that are operated by US adversaries, including Iran, North Korea, Russia, and China.
A ban on the short-form video app in the US would mean its removal from app stores. This would mean that the existing users of this video-sharing app would stop getting any further updates regarding security or bugs.
