A federal appeals court USA this Friday ratified the law that could prohibit TikTok in the country, claiming threats to national security from data collection what the platform does. The three judges of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia have positioned themselves in favor of the rule approved by Congress in April, which forces the social network to separate itself from its parent company in ChinaByteDance, or will be banned next January.
“The State acted solely to protect its freedom from a foreign adversary nation and to limit that adversary’s ability to collect data about people in the United States,” the court has stated. Although the court has recognized the implications that a ban could have for the millions of users, has warned that if it does not comply with the requirements it may not be available in the country “at least for a while.”
Specifically, federal law gave ByteDance nine months (until January 19) to find a investor from a country that is not considered an “adversary” of the US to sell its operations in this country. Otherwise, the application would have to stop operating in the country.
The social network faced the country in the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to try to maintain its presence in the US market, where it has 170 million users. Now the platform You can appeal the opinion of the Court before the US Supreme Court to try to stop the ban.
In the event that TikTok decides to appeal to the Supreme Court, the highest judicial instance in the country must be pronounced before the order comes into force on January 19. If you decide to hear the case, the order will be suspended until a final decision. In fact, a statement from the company as soon as the rejection of its appeal became known indicates that it intends to present its case before the high court.
“A court with a recognized track record in favor of protecting Americans’ right to freedom of expression. We hope that you do exactly the same in this important constitutional matter,” the company added in reference to the Supreme Court.
In it, TikTok denounces that this ban has been conceived and promoted based on “inaccurate, defective and hypothetical information, which has resulted in total censorship of the American people.” The company argues that the ban “unless stopped, will silence the voices of more than 170 million Americans in the US and around the world on January 19, 2025.
The Administration of President Joe Biden and congressmen from the Democratic and Republican parties fear that the Chinese Government could obtain information about users in the US and ByteDance from ByteDance. use your influence on public opinion manipulating what people see on the app. The president has the power to extend the prohibition period up to three additional months if he certifies that the company is making progress.
If not modified, The ban would take effect on his last day in the White House, on January 20, 2025, since the next day, President-elect Donald Trump will be inaugurated. The tycoon, for his part, who tried to ban the platform during his first term (2017-2021), said, during the election campaign, that if he were the winner of the elections he would “save TikTok in the United States.”