TikTok Ban Halted By Judge
The "ban" was supposed to begin Sunday, September 27th. What is actually meant by "ban" is that app stores would no longer carry TikTok and so no one new could download it. Also, there would be no more updates to the program.
But at the last moment, Judge Carl Nichols of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, granted an injunction. An injunction is just a temporary stay until the case can be decided.
But that is all the judge did. Still in place is a much broader ban that will take effect on Nov. 12 in the U.S.. That second ban could make the app unusable.
TikTok released a statement after the judge's decision. “We’re pleased that the court agreed with our legal arguments and issued an injunction preventing the implementation of the TikTok app ban. We will continue defending our rights for the benefit of our community and employees.”
“At the same time, we will also maintain our ongoing dialogue with the government to turn our proposal, which the President gave his preliminary approval to last weekend, into an agreement,” TikTok said.
The U.S. Commerce Department released a statement saying they will continue to pursue the President's executive order in a way that is “consistent with the law and promotes legitimate national security interests.”
While all this is going on, Oracle and Walmart have worked out buying a 20% stake in a new U.S.-based company called TikTok Global.
President Trump maintains that TikTok is a threat to national security that could help data mine users send information back to China.