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Restrictions on TikTok in the United States
Federal-government-imposed ban From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The short-form video-hosting service TikTok has been under a de jure nationwide ban in the United States since January 19, 2025, due to the US government's concerns over potential user data collection and influence operations by the government of the People's Republic of China. However, the ban has yet to be enforced. The ban took effect after ByteDance, the China-based parent company of TikTok, refused to sell the service before the deadline of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA). Prior to the ban, individual states, cities, universities, and government-affiliated devices had restricted TikTok.
In 2020, President Donald Trump proposed a ban of the app as he viewed it as a national security threat. In August, he signed an executive order instructing that ByteDance divest from the app, though the order was blocked by a court injunction in September and was reversed by the Biden administration in 2021. However, in 2024, PAFACA was proposed in Congress due to alleged security concerns. The bill was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden, setting a deadline for the app to be banned unless a qualified divestment were made before then. Following a legal challenge from TikTok, the law was upheld by the Supreme Court.
On January 18, 2025, the day before the deadline of the law, TikTok voluntarily suspended its services in the United States, even though Biden had declined to enforce the ban on his last day in office.[1] The following day, after President-elect Trump signaled that he would grant an extension to TikTok upon being inaugurated, services were restored. On January 20, the first day of his term, Trump signed an executive order that halted enforcement of the ban for a 75-day period while his administration pursues a potential sale of TikTok to American owners. This brought the deadline to April 5. On April 4, Trump signed an executive order to delay the ban's enforcement for another 75 days, to June 19. Then, on June 19, Trump signed yet another executive order, extending the deadline to September 17.[2] With each delay, the Trump administration sent letters to TikTok's service providers, claiming a sweeping power to effectively set aside laws.[3][4]
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First Trump administration (2017–2021)
In December 2019, the United States Army and Navy banned TikTok on government devices after the Department of Defense labeled it a security risk.[5] Before the policy change, army recruiters had been using the platform to attract young people. Unofficial promotional videos continue to be posted on TikTok under personal accounts, drawing the ire of government officials, but they have also helped boost the number of enlistees; several accounts have millions of views and followers.[5][6][7]
In 2020, the United States government announced that it was considering banning the Chinese social media platform TikTok upon a request from Donald Trump, the president of the United States, who viewed the app as a national security threat. The result was that the parent company of TikTok, ByteDance—which initially planned on selling a small portion of TikTok to an American company—agreed to divest TikTok to prevent a ban in the United States and in other countries where restrictions are also being considered due to privacy concerns, which themselves are mostly related to its ownership by a firm based in China.
TikTok later announced plans to file legal action challenging the order's transactional prohibitions with U.S. companies. The lawsuit against the Trump Administration's order was filed on August 24, 2020, with TikTok arguing that the order was motivated by Trump's efforts to boost re-election support through protectionist trade policies aimed at China. A separate suit filed the same day by TikTok's U.S. technical program manager Patrick Ryan against Trump and Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross sought a temporary restraining order, arguing that his due process rights were violated and the ban was an "unconstitutional taking" of Ryan's property under the Fifth Amendment; the suit also claimed that Trump's action was likely a retaliation sparked by pranks against a Trump campaign rally that were organized through TikTok videos. The American technology company Microsoft had previously proposed an idea to acquire TikTok's algorithm and other artificial intelligence technology, but this was declined by ByteDance, as its executives expressed concern that it would likely be opposed by the Chinese government, which in turn had criticized the Trump administration's order as a "smash and grab" forced sale. On September 13, 2021, ByteDance suggested that it would prefer the shuttering of US operations over such a sale.Biden administration (2021–2025)
On June 9, 2021, the Biden administration issued Executive Order 14034, "Protecting Americans' Sensitive Data from Foreign Adversaries" ("EO 14034"), overturning three executive orders signed by Donald Trump: Executive Order 13942, Executive Order 13943, and Executive Order 13971. Despite revoking these Executive Orders, the Biden Administration's EO 14034 has called upon other federal agencies to continue a broad review of foreign-owned applications set to continuously inform the President of the risk that the applications pose to personal data and national security.[8] The White House said that, "The Biden Administration is committed to promoting an open, interoperable, reliable, and secure Internet; protecting human rights online and offline; and supporting a vibrant, global digital economy."[9]
In December 2022, Senator Marco Rubio and representatives Mike Gallagher and Raja Krishnamoorthi introduced the Averting the National Threat of Internet Surveillance, Oppressive Censorship and Influence, and Algorithmic Learning by the Chinese Communist Party Act (ANTI-SOCIAL CCP Act), which would prohibit Chinese- and Russian-owned social networks from doing business in the United States.[10][11]
On December 30, 2022, President Joe Biden signed the No TikTok on Government Devices Act, prohibiting the use of the app on devices owned by the federal government, with some exceptions.[12] Days after the Biden administration called on ByteDance, which owns TikTok, to sell the platform or face a ban, law enforcement officials disclosed that an investigation into TikTok was taking place. On March 17, 2023, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) officially launched an investigation of TikTok, including allegations that the company spied on American journalists.[13]
On January 25, 2023, Missouri Senator Josh Hawley introduced a bill to ban the platform nationwide. After Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of TikTok, testified before the U.S. House of Representatives, Hawley's attempt to force a vote on this bill in the Senate was blocked on March 29, 2023, when Kentucky Senator Rand Paul objected.[14]
In February and March 2023, the DATA Act and the RESTRICT Act were both introduced in the House of Representatives and Senate, respectively. The DATA Act, introduced on February 24 by Michael McCaul, aimed to ban selling non-public personal data to third-party buyers.[15] On March 7, Senator Mark Warner introduced the RESTRICT Act: if passed, it would give the Secretary of Commerce authority to review business transactions made by IT service and product vendors tied to designated "foreign adversaries" if they present an undue threat to national security, and have more than one million active users in the United States. The legislation would allow for the enforcement of orders and other mitigation measures, which could include mandatory divestment, or being prohibited from doing business in the United States.[16]
Several officials subsequently cited alleged pro-Palestinian bias on the app.[17] While advocating for a ban, Representative Mike Gallagher alleged "rampant pro-Hamas propaganda on the app".[18] Senators Mitt Romney, Josh Hawley, Representative Mike Lawler, and other Republicans have also alleged that TikTok had a pro-Palestine bias, with Lawler even alleging that TikTok was being manipulated during pro-Palestinian protests at colleges.[19] In a filing to the Supreme Court, TikTok's attorneys said, "Allegations that TikTok has amplified support for either side of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict are unfounded."[20]
On March 13, 2024, the United States House of Representatives passed the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA) with largely bipartisan support from Democratic and Republican representatives.[21][22] It would ban operations related to the app completely within the country unless ByteDance makes a qualified divestiture as determined by the US president.[23] After modifications, the act passed the House again[24][25] and the United States Senate[26] before it was signed into law by Joe Biden on April 24, 2024. The ban went into effect on January 19, 2025. An additional 90 days could be issued on the deadline.[27]
Legal challenge
TikTok, Inc. v. Garland, 604 U.S. ___ (2025), was a United States Supreme Court case brought by ByteDance Ltd. and TikTok challenging the constitutionality of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA) based on the Freedom of Speech Clause of the First Amendment, the Bill of Attainder Clause of Article One, Section Nine, and the Due Process Clause and Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment.[28][29][30] The case was consolidated with Firebaugh v. Garland, a lawsuit TikTok content creators filed which also challenged the law.[31][32]
Citing national security concerns, the U.S. Congress in April 2024 passed PAFACA which prohibits the hosting and distribution of apps determined by the President to present a significant national security threat if they are made by social media companies owned by foreign nationals or parent companies from countries designated as U.S. foreign adversaries, unless such companies are divested from the foreign entities. The law specifically named Chinese company ByteDance Ltd. and TikTok as "foreign adversary controlled". The deadline for their divestment was January 19, 2025.[33][34]
ByteDance sued the federal government following passage of PAFACA, asserting the law violated the First and Fifth Amendments. A panel of judges from the U.S. District of Columbia Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously rejected the company's claims about the constitutionality of the law in December 2024[35][36][37] and declined to grant a temporary injunction. ByteDance then sought review by the Supreme Court.[38][39]
The Supreme Court granted certiorari for TikTok's appeal on an expedited schedule, and heard oral arguments on January 10, 2025, nine days before the law's divestment deadline. In a per curiam decision released on January 17, 2025, the Court ruled that the law was constitutional, as Congress had shown the law satisfies intermediate scrutiny review based on their concerns related to national security.[40]2025 shutdown
Messages displayed to US users who searched for TikTok on the TikTok website (top), Google Play Store (middle), and Apple App Store (bottom) while the ban was in effect
In January 2025, TikTok users began exploring options for a "mass migration" to other apps in the event that TikTok were to be banned. On January 13, many U.S. TikTok users began downloading and switching to the Chinese app Xiaohongshu (or RedNote),[41][42][43] which is similar to Instagram and TikTok, in protest of the ban. The hashtag "#tiktokrefugee" and the term TikTok refugee went viral on RedNote,[44][45] being used by both American and Chinese users.[46][47][48] The app became the most-downloaded free app on the Apple App Store,[49][50] and gained millions of U.S. users by January 16.[51][52] RedNote moderators worked overtime to translate content into English and accommodate the influx of new users.[53][54]
On January 16, a Biden administration official stated that it would forego any decision on whether to enforce the ruling to the incoming Trump administration.[55] On January 18, at approximately 10:30 p.m. EST, TikTok made their services temporarily unavailable in the United States after ByteDance refused to divest before the deadline of PAFACA.[56] The app was removed from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store for users in the United States, effectively blocking them from downloading the application onto most mobile devices.[57] Users with the application still installed received an error message informing them that the service was to become temporarily inaccessible in the US, and users visiting the website were shown a similar error message. Users were able to download their TikTok account data and sign in via the website, although all social functions, such as uploading, watching, commenting, or viewing profiles, were disabled.[58] Similar shutdowns of apps with connections to ByteDance followed, including Marvel Snap, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, CapCut, Lemon8, and Tokopedia.[59][60]
Hours after the suspension of services took effect, President-elect Donald Trump indicated on Truth Social that he would issue an executive order on the day of his inauguration "to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect".[61][62] At 12:00 p.m. EST on January 19, TikTok began restoring service. In a post on X, they stated that Trump provided "assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties".[63] Later on January 19, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson said, "I think we will enforce the law" and that his expectation is that TikTok would again be available on app stores only after Trump forces "a true divestiture, changing of hands, the ownership" of TikTok from ByteDance to a U.S. company.[64] Apple and Google have blocked efforts from TikTok to restore the app to their app stores. Senator Tom Cotton praised this, warning that companies that help maintain or distribute TikTok "could face hundreds of billions of dollars of ruinous liability under the law".[65]
Second Trump administration (2025–present)
Trump campaigned on promises of not banning TikTok, despite his original opposition.[66][67] Trump's cabinet picks for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), as well as most Republicans, remained in favor of banning the app.[66] Trump mentioned that after taking office, he would pursue a 'political resolution' regarding the issue.[68]
On January 20, the first day of his second term, Trump signed an executive order that instituted a 75-day period of non-enforcement of PAFACA.[69] The order also suggested that a liability shield would be provided to companies that provided services to TikTok during that time. Trump stated that his administration would work toward a deal for "the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture".[70] Based on this executive order, Acting Attorney General James McHenry sent letters to companies that provide services to TikTok, including Apple, Google, and Oracle.[71]
On social media, Trump stated that his administration would work toward a deal for "the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture".[70] Trump later ordered the creation of a sovereign wealth fund, which he suggested could buy TikTok.[72] On January 25, negotiations were reported as being underway for a deal that would entail a takeover of TikTok's US operations by Oracle and American investors, addressing national security concerns, with a decision expected within 30 days. ByteDance would retain a stake while Oracle would manage data and software updates.[73]
Near the start of February, U.S. Vice President JD Vance and National Security Advisor Michael Waltz were announced as being in charge of negotiating a potential TikTok sale.[74] U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi sent letters to tech companies promising they would not face fines for hosting TikTok and other ByteDance apps during that time, prompting Apple and Google to restore these apps to their app stores on February 13.[75]
On April 4, one day before the period of non-enforcement was set to expire, President Trump signed an executive order again delaying the enforcement of the TikTok ban by 75 days.[76] He had nearly secured a deal that included ByteDance maintaining a minority position in a new company based in the U.S. and owned by American investors, but China withdrew its support for the deal due to Trump imposing reciprocal tariffs against it.[77]
On June 19, Trump signed a third executive order to delay the ban 90 days, instead of the usual 75.[78]
On July 3, Attorney General Pam Bondi's letters to 10 tech companies became public due to two lawsuits under the Freedom of Information Act.[3][79] According to Bondi, because Trump had decided that an “abrupt shutdown” of TikTok would interfere with his “constitutional duties,” the law banning TikTok must give way to the President's “core presidential national security and foreign affairs powers.”[80] Additionally, the letters to Apple Inc., Google, and Microsoft claim that “the Department of Justice is also irrevocably relinquishing any claims the United States might have had against” the companies for violating the TikTok ban.[81][82]
Legal experts noted that presidents “don’t have the power to change the law itself” and described the administration's “radical theory of presidential power” as an “astonishing” claim that “could set a very corrosive precedent.”[3][83][84] According to Jack Goldsmith, a Harvard Law School professor who previously led DOJ's Office of Legal Counsel, “the president and the attorney general have asserted a power to wipe out the effects of any law related to national security or foreign affairs on the president’s say so,” an assertion that is “maybe the broadest I have ever seen any president or Justice Department make, ever, in any context.”[85]
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On April 14, 2023, Montana became the first state to pass legislation banning TikTok on all personal devices operating within state lines, and barring app stores from offering TikTok for download.[86][87][88] Governor Greg Gianforte signed the bill, Senate Bill (SB) 419, into law on May 17.[89][90] The ban was blocked by US District Judge Donald W. Molloy on December 1, 2023, as he stated the ban "infringes on the Constitutional right of users and businesses". Due to the block, the ban did not come into effect as planned.[91]
As of April 2023,[92][93] at least 34 out of 50 states have announced or enacted bans on state government agencies, employees, and contractors using TikTok on government-issued devices. State bans only affect government employees and do not prohibit civilians from having or using the app on their personal devices.
In August 2023, New York City banned TikTok on government-owned devices for security reasons.[132]
Some public universities have also banned TikTok on campus Wi-Fi and university-owned computers. These include, but are not limited to:
- Arizona State University[133]
- Arkansas State University[134]
- Arkansas Tech University[134]
- Auburn University[135]
- Black Hills State University[136]
- Boise State University[137]
- Clemson University[138]
- Dakota State University[136]
- Idaho State University[137]
- Iowa State University[136]
- Lamar University[137]
- Langston University[137]
- McLennan Community College[134]
- Montana University System[134]
- Morgan State University[136]
- Northeastern State University[136]
- Northern State University[136]
- Northwestern Oklahoma State University[134]
- Oklahoma State University[134]
- Purdue University[139]
- South Dakota School of Mines and Technology[136]
- South Dakota State University[136]
- Texas A&M University System[134]
- Texas State Technical College[134]
- Texas State University[134]
- Texas Tech University System[136]
- University of Arizona[140]
- University of Arkansas System[141]
- University of Central Oklahoma[134]
- University of Florida[136]
- University of Houston System[142]
- University of Idaho[136]
- University of Iowa[136]
- University of Northern Iowa[136]
- University of Oklahoma[136]
- University of South Dakota[136]
- University of Texas at Arlington[134]
- University of Texas at Austin[136]
- University of Texas at Dallas[134]
- University of Texas at San Antonio[134]
- University of Texas Rio Grande Valley[134]
- University of Wisconsin System[93]
- University System of Georgia[135]
- West Texas A&M University[136]
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TikTok said the company takes regular action against covert influence networks and has "more than 150 elections globally" behind it.[143] ByteDance is incorporated in the Cayman Islands, while TikTok Inc. is incorporated in California and Delaware[144] and says 60% of ByteDance is owned by global institutional investors.[145]
TikTok began working on Project Texas after 2020 to address data concerns from the US government.[146] From 2019 to 2024, TikTok and ByteDance combined spent $27 million on lobbying in the United States, including their hire of SKDK, a public affairs firm, in 2023 according to Politico.[147][148] Reuters reported that according to its sources, if all legal methods to block the April 2024 ban are exhausted, ByteDance would prefer to shut down TikTok than sell it with its core algorithm, which is also subject to China's export control.[149] On May 7, 2024, ByteDance and TikTok filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia to overturn PAFACA.[150][151]
In March 2024, a spokesperson for Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China said PAFACA was putting the U.S. on "the opposite side of the principle of fair competition and international economic and trade rules."[152] Representatives from the Embassy of China in Washington, D.C. met with U.S. congressional staffers to lobby against the bill.[153] The Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party also instructed the country's state media outlets to increase positive coverage of ByteDance. Overall, Beijing's response seems to be muted so far.[154]
Content creators described concerns about how they would make their living should a ban take effect.[155] Following the passing of PAFACA, eight TikTok content creators sued the United States government on May 14, 2024, in United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in an effort to overturn the act; the choice of venue was due to a provision in the act making it the "exclusive jurisdiction" for legal challenges of the act.[156]
Criticism
Bans and attempted bans in the United States have drawn objections citing hypocrisy, protectionism, and not addressing user data privacy in general. Lawmakers making allegations against TikTok fail to mention that the United States itself surveils non-US nationals under Section 702 of FISA.[157] The types of data collected by TikTok are also collected by other social media platforms and sold through brokers to private buyers and reportedly government agencies as well, without oversight.[157][158] Some researchers from the Citizen Lab and the Center for Strategic and International Studies stated that user information in general should be protected, not just focusing on one platform.[158][159][160] Critics have also labeled a potential ban on the app an assault on freedom of speech, including Republican congressmen Rand Paul and Thomas Massie.[161][162]
Observers have argued that the national security concerns raised are largely hypothetical.[163][164][165] There is insufficient public evidence to show that American user data has been accessed by or shared with the PRC government,[166][144][167] with some claims reportedly exaggerated.[168] Biden himself was on TikTok as the president, while Trump has reversed his previous position.[169] Lawmakers against the bill said the process was quickly rushed.[170][171][172] Computer security specialist Bruce Schneier has argued that which company owns TikTok may be irrelevant, since for example, Russia still interfered in the 2016 US elections using Facebook without owning it.[173]
Congressional advocates for a ban have stated that the platform supports an anti-Israel bias, arguing that manipulation justifies a nationwide ban.[174] Analysis from Vox countered this argument, stating that support for the Palestinian cause has been growing among younger generations, who make up the majority of TikTok's users, even before the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel.[175] Analysts argued that popular videos on the app in support of Palestinians or criticizing Israel were "likely an accurate reflection of the beliefs shared by the majority of users using the platform".[176]
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