US TikTok ban: When and why could the app be outlawed?
US TikTok ban: When could the app be banned and will Trump save it?
(21 days later)
TikTok has suffered a setback in its fight against a law which will ban it in the US unless it is sold by ByteDance, its Chinese parent company.
Social media company TikTok faces a ban in the US unless it is sold by its Chinese parent company ByteDance by 19 January.
In December, a court in the US rejected its attempt to appeal the law, passed in April- paving the way for its potential ban.
However, President-elect Donald Trump - who takes office the next day - has asked the Supreme Court to delay the ban when it hears arguments about the case on 10 January.
The video sharing app has millions of users worldwide, but has faced questions over the security of data and links to the government in Beijing.
Who wants to ban TikTok in the US and why?
Who wants to ban TikTok in the US and why?
Lawmakers from both major US political parties supported a law that bans TikTok unless ByteDance agrees to sell to a non-Chinese company.
US officials and lawmakers have accused TikTok's owner ByteDance of being linked to the Chinese government.
They fear the Chinese government could force ByteDance to hand over data about TikTok's 170 million US users.
Many have cited national security concerns over the app, claiming that it could be forced by Beijing to hand over data about its 170 million US users.
TikTok insists it would not provide foreign user data to the Chinese government.
The US Justice Department has said that because of its Chinese parent company, and access to data on American users, TikTok poses "a national-security threat of immense depth and scale".
In April, following approval by Congress, President Joe Biden signed a bill paving the way for TikTok's forced sale.
In April 2024, US Congress passed a bill, which President Joe Biden signed into law, giving ByteDance nine months to find a US-approved buyer or see TikTok shut down across the US.
Previous attempts to block the app in the US on national security grounds have failed.
TikTok and ByteDance deny being linked to the Chinese government, or that any data would be handed over. They have also previously ruled out a sale.
Donald Trump tried to ban the app while he was in the White House in 2020.
The firms have filed multiple legal challenges against the law, saying it is "unconstitutional" and would have a "staggering" impact on free speech by censoring its US users.
But he criticised the new legislation during his successful bid to return as the US president in the 2024 US election, arguing that limiting TikTok would unfairly benefit Facebook.
They have said that even a temporary ban in early 2025 would have "devastating effects" on their operations and users.
The US Supreme Court has deferred TikTok and ByteDance's request for an emergency injunction to delay a potential ban while it hears their case.
It will hear arguments from the companies, and the US government, about whether the law violates the US constitutional right to free speech, on 10 January.
Is TikTok really a danger to the West?
Is TikTok really a danger to the West?
Can TikTok's owner afford to lose its killer app?
What could a TikTok ban mean for creators?
When could TikTok be banned?
Could Donald Trump stop TikTok's ban?
Mr Biden signing the bill into law did not mean an immediate US ban for TikTok, but it did start a ticking clock.
Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 election may offer TikTok a lifeline.
The legislation gives ByteDance nine months to sell TikTok to a new buyer, with an additional three-month grace period, before any ban would take effect.
He tried to ban the app while he was in the White House in 2020, but has now called on the US Supreme Court to delay the ban while he works on a "political resolution".
TikTok said this could mean it is either forced to sell or shut down in the US by 19 January 2025.
Trump will be sworn in as the 47th US president on 20 January 2025, the day after TikTok's deadline to be sold or banned.
But the company's fight against the legislation in court, which began when it sued to block the law in May, could take years.
Ahead of the hearing, his lawyer filed a legal brief saying that Trump "opposes banning TikTok" and intends to resolve the issues "through political means once he takes office".
Trump's victory in the 2024 US Election may also throw TikTok a lifeline.
Trump's meeting with TikTok's boss Shou Zi Chew in December also increased hopes among the law's opponents that he would intervene.
The president-elect said in the run-up to the November elections that he would not let a ban take effect.
How would a TikTok ban work?
How would a TikTok ban work?
The most straightforward way for the US to ban TikTok would be to remove it from app stores, such as those operated by Apple and Google for iOS and Android devices.
Online marketplaces, such as app stores, and web hosting platforms will have to stop making TikTok available to Americans if its ban goes ahead.
App stores are how most people download apps on to their smartphones and tablets, so the ban would stop new users from getting TikTok.
Politicians have told Apple and Google's bosses, external to be ready to pull TikTok from the App Store and Google Play store for iOS and Android devices.
It would also mean that people who already had the app would no longer be able to get future updates designed to improve security or fix bugs.
Most people download apps onto their smartphones and tablets through app stores, so the ban would stop new users from getting TikTok.
It also would mean that people who already had the app would no longer be able to get future updates designed to improve security or fix bugs.
The bill forbids applications controlled by US adversary countries from being updated and maintained in the US.
The bill forbids applications controlled by US adversary countries from being updated and maintained in the US.
It gives broad powers to the president to limit apps with ties to Russia, China, Iran and North Korea.
It gives broad powers to the president to limit apps with ties not only to China but also Russia, Iran and North Korea.
What has TikTok said it will do about the ban?
How a TikTok ban would - or wouldn't - work in practice
TikTok has previously called the law "unconstitutional" and said it is an affront to the US right to free speech.
What data does TikTok collect?
Its arguments were heard by a three-judge panel at a Washington DC federal appeals court in September.
At the heart of TikTok is its algorithm - a set of instructions that determine the content displayed to users, based on data about how they engaged with other material.
TikTok's lawyers told the court that a ban would have a "staggering" impact on the free speech of its US users, and creators opposing the law also voiced concerns about its impact on their work.
TikTok can use this data, as well as information about an individual user's device, location and keystroke rhythms, to recommend videos to users on its automatically generated For You feed.
But its appeal was rejected by the DC court in a ruling issued on Friday 6 December, which found in the favour of the law.
Some researchers, external have previously claimed the app collects more data from users than others in order to power its highly personalised system.
The platform said it will take its legal fight to the US's highest legal authority, the Supreme Court.
However, rival social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram collect similar user data.
"The Supreme Court has an established historical record of protecting Americans' right to free speech, and we expect they will do just that on this important constitutional issue," a TikTok spokesperson said.
Are Chinese tech firms a security risk?
They added the law was based on "inaccurate, flawed and hypothetical information" and that a ban would censor US citizens.
TikTok's boss Shou Zi Chew told users in a video, external at the start of its legal fightback that "we aren't going anywhere".
TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew studied at Harvard Business School and spent time at Facebook
ByteDance would also have to seek approval from Chinese officials to sell TikTok, but Beijing has vowed to oppose such a move.
How have TikTok users in the US responded?
Many US creators and users have criticised the potential ban.
Tiffany Yu, a young disability advocate from Los Angeles, told the BBC at a protest outside the White House the platform was vital to her work.
Watch: How do young Americans feel about a ban on TikTok?
In March 2024, TikTok asked its 170 million US users to contact their political representatives and ask them not to support the bill.
But the deluge of "confused" calls from TikTok users to congressmen and senators seemingly backfired.
Several politicians said the campaign worsened the concerns they had about the app, and strengthened their resolve to pass the legislation.
What could a TikTok ban mean for creators?
US TikTok ban would be 'devastating', UK firms warn
Is TikTok banned in other countries?
Is TikTok banned in other countries?
It is thought the US TikTok bill could inspire similar moves elsewhere.
TikTok is already banned in India, which was one of the app's largest markets before it was outlawed there in June 2020.
TikTok is already banned in India, which was one of the app's largest markets before it was outlawed in June 2020.
It is also blocked in Iran, Nepal, Afghanistan and Somalia.
It is also blocked in Iran, Nepal, Afghanistan and Somalia.
The UK government and Parliament banned TikTok from staff work devices in 2023, as has the European Commission.
The UK government and Parliament banned TikTok from staff work devices in 2023, as has the European Commission.
The BBC also advised staff to delete TikTok from corporate phones because of security fears.
The BBC also advised staff to delete TikTok from corporate phones because of security fears.
How does TikTok work and how much user data does it collect?
At the heart of TikTok is its algorithm, a set of instructions which determines which content is presented to users, based on data about how they engaged with previous material.
Users are offered three main feeds on their app - Following, Friends and For You.
The Following and Friends feeds present users with content from people they have chosen to follow and who follow them back, but the For You feed is automatically generated by the app.
This curated feed has become the main destination for users looking for new content, and creators hungry for the millions of views TikTok videos can clock up if they go viral.
Critics say the app collects more data than other social media platforms in order to power its highly personalised system.
This can include information about users' location, device, the content they engage with and keystroke rhythms they exhibit while typing.
But popular social media apps such as Facebook and Instagram collect similar data from users.
