A federal appeals court ruled on Friday to uphold legislation mandating TikTok’s sale or ban in the United State. The ruling urged its U.S. operations to be sold to a non-Chinese entity or face a complete ban in the country.
This ruling marks the latest conflict between the U.S. government and TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance.
ByteDance is said to have until January 19 to comply with the ruling or see TikTok banned from the U.S. while, millions of American users may need to turn to alternative platforms for communication.
The U.S. government has justified its stance by citing national security concerns, claiming that China could exploit the app to gather sensitive personal data from millions of Americans or manipulate the platform to spread propaganda. However, no direct evidence has been provided to suggest that ByteDance or Beijing has engaged in such activities.
Congressman Josh Gottheimer, a Democrat from New Jersey, stated that the Chinese Communist Party could manipulate what millions of people see on the app and spread propaganda. Such fears have fueled bipartisan calls for action against the app.
In response, TikTok, ByteDance, and a group of social media influencers filed a lawsuit in May challenging the law. They argue that the legislation unfairly targets TikTok, infringes on the constitutional rights of its users, and violates free speech protections.
Despite being owned by a Chinese company, TikTok asserts its independence, emphasising that it operates with separate management and maintains headquarters in Los Angeles and Singapore. Additionally, the company points out that U.S. user data is managed by Oracle, an American firm, to address security concerns.
Civil and digital rights groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the Center for Democracy and Technology, have opposed the ban. In a letter to Congress last March, they argued that enacting a comprehensive privacy law would be a more effective solution for protecting personal data. They described the ban as censorship.
With TikTok hosting 170 million U.S. users which is nearly half the nation’s population, the platform’s future hangs in the balance as the battle over data security, free speech, and technology regulation intensifies.
