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BLOCKED: US Department of Commerce Introduces Ban on New Downloads of TikTok App from US Retailers. Photo: Mark Schiefelbein / AP / NTB
The United States is blocking the download of Chinese-owned TikTok and Wechat on Sunday, the Ministry of Commerce reports. But millions can still use the TikTok video app.
President Donald Trump announced as early as August that the TikTok video-sharing service would be banned for national security reasons, unless the company’s operations in the United States fell into American hands.
Trump has accused China of using the services to steal user data and use it for surveillance.
TikTok has denied allegations that the company shares user data with the government and says the data of 100 million US users is not stored in China.
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“Malicious Collection”
The measures will counter “China’s malicious collection of personal data of Americans,” according to US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.
Wechat is very common among Chinese living abroad and is used both for sending messages, money transfers and as a social medium.
At the same time that the ban constitutes an escalation in the trade war between China and the United States, pressure is mounting on TikTok owner Bytedance to sell parts of the operations to a US company.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says US authorities are blocking the use of two Chinese apps for national security reasons. Photo: Erin Scott / Pool via AP / NTB
On Friday night, Trump said he hopes it will happen quickly.
“We have to have total security from China,” he said.
The US company Oracle has recently been negotiating with Bytedance about a sale. But the White House has yet to approve the offer.
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TikTok use is still possible
The most drastic punitive measures against TikTok have not been announced to take effect until after the November 3 elections. People who have already downloaded TikTok can continue to use the app until penalties under the plan are tightened on November 12.
Therefore, it is still possible for TikTok to achieve an agreement that satisfies the US authorities.
“For TikTok, the only real change from Sunday is that users will not have access to updated applications, improved applications or maintenance,” Ross said, according to The New York Times.
Presidentordre
Wechat users will likely notice the sanctions on Sunday, when key services in the United States will be shut down. The same day the download of both applications from the Apple and Google online stores stops.
“The Chinese Communist Party has shown that it has the means and motive to use these apps to threaten the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States,” Ross said.
In August, Trump issued an order making it illegal for US citizens and businesses to trade with TikTok as of September 20.
TikTok has sued the US authorities and believes that Trump’s order is unconstitutional. The United States is putting obstacles in the way of a tool used for “entertainment, personal expression and knowledge,” the company said in a statement Friday.
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TikTok skuffet
TikTok adds that they hoped that agreements on greater transparency would be enough for US authorities.
The American civil rights organization Aclu also believes that the ban is a severe restriction of personal freedom in the United States.
– The order is a violation of the first constitutional amendment as it limits people’s ability to communicate and conduct important transactions through TikTok and Wechat, tweets ACLU.
They also emphasized that download blocking prevents the ability to download important security updates that could make the app vulnerable.
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