US Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban

TikTok, the popular video-sharing platform, is set to be banned in the United States at midnight on Sunday, January 19. The Supreme Court upheld a nationwide ban on the Chinese-owned social media app citing national security and data privacy concerns.

The conservative majority court, in a unanimous decision, agreed with lower courts, outgoing president Joe Biden, and both houses of Congress, who passed the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act. This law requires TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to either divest the service or face being cut off from US app stores and hosting services.

The Supreme Court stated in its opinion that while TikTok provides a platform for expression and community to millions of Americans, Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary due to national security concerns related to data collection practices and its relationship with a foreign adversary.

Craig Singleton, a senior fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, highlighted the security risks posed by Chinese-owned social media apps and praised the court’s decision as a validation of those concerns.

While TikTok has faced bans in other countries, the US ban marks the first time a widely-used service like TikTok has been banned outright in a major market. This will impact businesses, creators, and influencers not just in the US but globally.