For the first time in Internet history, the United States government has officially bans major global social media platformjoining the ranks of authoritarian regimes like Russia and China. On Saturday, TikTok officially went dark. Users trying to access the app are now greeted with a message saying “TikTok is not available at the moment.”
“We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated he will work with us on a solution to restore TikTok once he takes office,” the message added. “Please stay tuned!”
This is the end result of Congressional legislation passed last year this forces TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to either sell the app’s U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban. But unlike countries that regularly censor the internet, the United States does not have a centralized infrastructure to prevent Americans from accessing specific apps or websites.
Instead, the law puts pressure on Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores or face millions of dollars in fines. Both companies appear to have removed TikTok and other apps owned by its parent company, ByteDancefrom Saturday. Google and Apple did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The law also prohibits companies from providing data hosting services to TikTok. Oracle, which counts TikTok among its largest cloud computing clients, reportedly started telling the staff to close the servers that host TikTok’s American data on Saturday, according to The Information. Oracle did not immediately return a request for comment.
In May, TikTok and a group of American creators called to prevent the law from taking effect, saying it violated the First Amendment. The Supreme Court rejected these arguments in a unanimous decision on January 17, concluding that the provision was motivated by “well-founded national security concerns.”
“This is a blatant violation of the First Amendment,” says Evelyn Douek, a professor at Stanford Law School who specializes in online speech issues. “Unfortunately for me, all nine Supreme Court justices disagree, and almost everyone who matters will listen to their opinion over mine. It is difficult to take the national security rationale seriously, however, when in recent days past and future presidents and members of Congress appear to be backtracking on whether an immediate shutdown is ultimately necessary.”
With the deadline just days away, President Biden indicated he would leave enforcement of the law to the incoming Trump administration. The move left the app’s fate in limbo, and TikTok on Saturday urged the Biden administration to provide definitive assurance that it would not enforce the law. In response, Biden’s team suggested that TikTok take its concerns to Trump.
On Blind, an anonymous messaging app popular with tech workers, some TikTok employees wondered if they would have a job next month, while others continued business as usual. “Is someone else’s manager still scheduling meetings next week about new upcoming projects without acknowledging the ban at all? »wrote one user. “I have 2025 strategy meetings next week,” another user replied. “I just do what I’m told. It’s comforting in a way.