Millions of Americans Wake Up to Find They No Longer Have Access to TikTok

American social media users woke up this morning to find that they no longer had access to TikTok after the much-anticipated ban was implemented.

Deleted from Apple’s App Store and Google Play Store, TikTokers with the app downloaded on their phone are being shown a message that reads: “A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now. We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned.”

The message U.S. users get when they open TikTok.

Formally known as the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act”, the divest-or-ban law has passed despite politicians on both sides of the divide expressing doubt over it.

On Thursday, a White House official said: “Americans shouldn’t expect to see TikTok suddenly banned on Sunday.” An official tells AP that the Biden administration won’t enforce the ban and will leave its fate in the hands of President-elect Donald Trump.

Trump has described TikTok as a “fantastic platform” and tells NBC News that he will “most likely” give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the ban when he takes office tomorrow (Monday).

Despite concerns over privacy and data, the ban is an unpopular move with content creators who have built up huge audiences on the platform and rely on it for revenue devastated as all their work goes up in smoke.

In the run-up to the ban, TikTokers had been ridiculing the ban with “Goodbye to my Chinese spy” becoming a trend on the platform as people made light of the political situation.

How Did We Get Here?

Multiple U.S. agencies and public officials have stated that TikTok poses a national security risk to the United States because, at any time, the Chinese government could compel the company to hand over a huge trove of U.S. citizens’ data.

The law that called for the Chinese-based parent company Bytedance to divest or be banned was passed last year and signed by President Joe Biden. TikTok has since sued multiple times in an attempt to overturn the law, but appeals courts upheld the ban. The case made it to the Supreme Court which upheld the ban.

“Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary,” the court wrote in its decision.

TikTok has faced scrutiny and bans from both sides of the American political aisle. Before President Biden’s term, then-president Trump attempted to ban the app via executive order which was found to be unconstitutional. In response, congress worked to pass the ban as a law in 2024. Trump has since flip-flopped, now saying that he vows to overturn the law once sworn in.

TikTok says it has “invested billions of dollars to keep U.S. data safe and our platform free from outside influence and manipulation.” While adding that the ban will “devastate seven million businesses and silence 170 million Americans.”

Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.