Key Points
• TikTok has confirmed it is shutting down in the United States due to a US law banning the app.
• Apple has removed TikTok from the App Store in the US, and Google has removed it from the Play Store.
• ByteDance’s video editing app, CapCut, is also offline in the US and has been removed from the App Store.
TikTok has announced that it will be shutting down in the United States due to a US law banning the app. The company has sent a notification to users stating that the service will be temporarily unavailable until further notice. Apple has also removed TikTok from the App Store in the US, and Google has removed it from the Play Store.
The decision comes after TikTok’s China-linked parent company, ByteDance, failed to circumvent a law requiring it to sell the app or face a federal ban. The company was given nine months to offload TikTok, and the deadline officially expires at midnight tonight.
In an interview with NBC News, incoming President Trump indicated that he may give TikTok a 90-day extension. If this happens, TikTok could return to the US for at least 90 days, but what happens after that remains to be seen.
TikTok has taken its case to the US Supreme Court, which upheld the law on Friday. The company is optimistic about the app’s future under Trump, stating in an internal memo that it is working tirelessly to bring the app back to the US as soon as possible.
The ban goes into effect tomorrow, January 19, the final full day of President Biden’s term. The Biden administration has largely punted the burden of enforcing the law to the Trump administration, but the law still technically goes into effect as of Sunday.
What’s Next?
Stay tuned for updates on the future of TikTok in the US. If Trump follows through on his promise, TikTok could return to the US as soon as Monday for at least 90 days. In the meantime, users are advised to remove the app from their devices and explore alternative social media platforms.
As a precaution, it’s also a good idea to reset your passwords and enable two-factor authentication on other social media accounts to protect your online identity.
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