The Current Status of the TikTok 'Ban'

The TikTok ban saga: A whirlwind of events and unanswered questions. Is the app banned? Saved? The situation remains fluid, but here's a breakdown of the recent developments.

The Backstory:

The push to ban TikTok in the US began during the Trump administration and culminated in a law requiring ByteDance to divest its stake by January 19th, or face a ban. ByteDance refused to sell, leading to a Supreme Court ruling against them. TikTok threatened to shut down unless the Biden administration intervened, but the administration deferred the issue to the incoming Trump administration. Meanwhile, reports surfaced of Trump considering an executive order to extend the deadline.

Saturday, January 18th:

With the ban looming, TikTok unexpectedly went dark hours before the deadline. A message appeared stating the ban was in effect, but also appealed to President-elect Trump for a solution. Attempts to circumvent the ban using VPNs proved largely unsuccessful, with TikTok blocking US-based accounts. Success with VPNs was inconsistent and depended heavily on the chosen server location.

Sunday, January 19th:

TikTok remained offline through much of Sunday. Speculation mounted regarding the timeline for its return, with the Trump inauguration the following day. However, before Trump's inauguration, he publicly stated his intention to "save TikTok," prompting the app's return to service for US users in the early afternoon. The outage lasted less than 15 hours.

Monday, January 20th:

On his inauguration day, President Trump issued an executive order delaying the TikTok ban by 75 days. This directive prevents the Justice Department from enforcing the ban while seeking a buyer for TikTok. Despite ByteDance and China's initial resistance to selling, the latter showed signs of potential interest following Trump's action. TikTok CEO Shou Chew was reportedly in attendance at the inauguration.

Tuesday, January 21st:

The situation remains largely unchanged, except for Trump's implied threat of tariffs on China if they obstruct a sale of TikTok.

The Future:

The situation is volatile and unprecedented. While Trump's actions present TikTok as a "saved" entity, the app is far from secure. Apple and Google haven't reinstated TikTok, and may not until the legal situation stabilizes. The legal ban remains in effect, and the extent of Trump's authority to extend the deadline after it passed is unclear. Trump's desire for a US company to hold a 50% stake is a less stringent condition than the original law's requirement for complete US control.

A US TikTok ban now means complete app shutdown for US-based accounts, with limited success using VPNs. The question remains: will a full ban eventually occur, or will a sale of part or all of TikTok take place? This article will be updated with further developments. For now, users who downloaded the app before Saturday night can continue using it, but the future remains uncertain.

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