WhistleOut fast facts
- Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed a law banning TikTok on Wednesday, May 17.
- The law explicitly cites a claim that the Chinese government could use the app to push messages to the public and harvest data.
- TikTok is fighting the law in court and saying it violates their first amendment (free speech) rights. The company also argues that the government needs to enforce national security issues on a federal level.
- The Montana state law will go into effect on January 1, 2024.
A Montana state law banning TikTok was signed last week and will go into effect on January 1, 2024—as long as it stands up to a court challenge by TikTok. The company sued Montana in federal court, arguing that the ban violates the First Amendment and freedom of speech in the U.S. and is preempted by federal law.
The lawsuit also alleges that TikTok empowers users in Montana to “communicate and express themselves” through short-form videos and that the app has “become home to thousands of different communities and a thriving forum for a wide range of businesses and entrepreneurs to communicate about their products and services.” Meanwhile, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte says the law “protects Montanans’ private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party.”
According to a TikTok spokesperson, over 200,000 people have TikTok accounts in Montana, and over 6,000 Montana businesses are on the app.
Although the governor has signed it into law, the ban does not go into effect immediately. Montanans can still download the app and use it freely until January 1, 2024.
Could a TikTok ban work?
TikTok is the most popular social media platform in the U.S., and a ban would be hard to enforce. But it’s not out of the question. Min Hwan Ahn, a partner at the Law Office of Ahn & Sinowitz, told WhistleOut that platforms can face “increased scrutiny and potential regulation” if they are “believed to pose a significant security risk to user data and national interests.”
But, Ahn noted, “It’s essential to strike a balance between national security and individual rights to free speech and expression.” The free speech and expression argument is what TikTok is using in its lawsuit against Montana.
Additionally, the U.S. has no apparatus to block what its citizens access on the web, and internet service providers (including cellular service) are not liable in the newly passed law. Tech companies also cannot prevent TikTok from being downloaded in Montana.
Yash Giri, a cybersecurity expert at TechnoGraphx, thinks that education and awareness campaigns focused on the potential risks from social media platforms are a better first step. A ban is a big step, especially after federal lawmakers cited free speech concerns and Congress warned TikTok about its ties to China.
Giri told WhistleOut, “By educating individuals about privacy settings, data-sharing practices, and the significance of strong passwords, governments can empower users to make well-informed decisions regarding their online presence.”
TikTok in the U.S.
A WhistleOut survey found that TikTok has support in the U.S., with over 150 million monthly active users as of February 2023. That’s no surprise; the company has widespread usage, with 61% of Americans surveyed saying a nationwide TikTok ban would affect their daily habits.
WhistleOut found that 44% of Americans don’t agree with a TikTok ban. Only 31% of respondents favor the ban, and 25% are unsure. That means that the U.S. and TikTok still have a lot of work to do educating the public about the risks and benefits of the app operating in the country.
Iff the U.S. eventually banned the app entirely, TikTok could find itself with fast-dropping numbers. Only 28% of Americans would continue using a social media app after it’s banned. (It’s difficult to know how a ban would work in the U.S. for everyday citizens.)
The company has faced challenges over its ties to China already. Bytedance, TikTok’s parent company, is a Chinese internet company, and the U.S. and other countries have expressed concerns that China could access user data. So far, the U.S. has not regulated the app for everyday citizens, but the Biden administration did ban TikTok from all federal government devices starting in March 2023.
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Alex Kerai
Consumer Trends Reporter
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