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TikTok is under fire in the US because of concerns that it could endanger national security. So how long will it be permitted in the nation?
Is TikTok facing a total ban in the United States? The White House has given federal agencies 30 days to delete the app from any devices provided by the government. The American Congress has approved a bill that forbids TikTok on all devices used by the government.
TikTok is again facing a potential ban in the United States after FCC commissioner Brendan Carr raised concerns about the app’s risk to national security https://t.co/RynSomcX2B pic.twitter.com/lMRnEBgCzU
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TikTok Should Be Banned, Says US FCC Commissioner #SEO #Google #Apple #IOS #cybersecurity #Robotics #AI https://t.co/XXufXiZtF7
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TikTok could be facing a ban in the United States after a commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) raised concerns over n...
Countdown to TikTok's App Store Ban
— Attorney Omar Zambrano (@OmarZambranoLaw) December 16, 2022
TikTok, the popular video-sharing app, is facing a ban in the United States. pic.twitter.com/0e4v342at3
The legislation forbids the use of TikTok on equipment owned by any federal government agency by workers of the government, and President Joe Biden later signed it into law. In some states in the United States, like Texas, Wisconsin, and North Carolina, State personnel are not allowed to use TikTok on devices that are provided by the government in Ohio, New Jersey, Arkansas, South Dakota, and other states.
Shalanda D. Young, director of the Office of Management and Budget, issued instructions this week requiring all executive agencies, as well as individuals and businesses they do business with, to remove TikTok or any other app created by its parent company, ByteDance, from government-issued devices within the following 30 days. The rule further states that all organizations covered by the prohibition must specify in upcoming contracts that contractors may not use the app on their personal devices. For the sake of law enforcement, national security, and research, there are a few exceptions, though.
TikTok Ban Is Not For The General Audience
The instruction, which was first reported by Reuters, is exclusively intended for government agencies and their contractors and tries to enforce the law that was passed in December. As a result, the TikTok prohibition has so far mainly been avoided by the general public. The software is still completely legal and can be downloaded from both the iTunes Store and the Play Store. Nevertheless, some senators also intend to propose legislation that would outright prohibit the app in the U.S., so it might not be downloaded there in the future.
Senator Josh Hawley (R), who intends to present a measure to permanently outlaw the app, is one such lawmaker. Hawley argued that TikTok is "China's backdoor into Americans' life" and that it endangers American children's privacy and mental health in January 2023. Hawley stated that he wants to file legislation that will outlaw TikTok nationwide, but he has not yet specified when he intends to do so. The last attempt to impose a statewide ban on TikTok by the American government, led by former President Donald Trump, was unsuccessful.
TikTok has frequently been at the center of debates over false information and unsettling patterns that endanger the lives and well-being of its users, but there is no connection between the recent wave of bans by state and federal authorities and those issues. Instead, they are based on worries that the Chinese government would use the program to eavesdrop on Americans. TikTok, on the other hand, vehemently refutes any claims of cooperation with the Chinese government. A future ban in the US can't be completely ruled out given that TikTok has already been outlawed in nations like India due to similar issues.
Source: White House, Reuters
