TikTok is live again in the US after 13 hours in the dark

TikTok users in the United States can celebrate as their beloved app is back online. 170 million Americans were greeted on Sunday with the news of the app's ban, and upon opening it, they encountered a pop-up indicating that the law prohibiting TikTok has been put into effect.

After 13 hours, the app reported that it was working on restoring services and expressed gratitude to President Trump for offering "the necessary clarity and assurance" that the company will not face penalties if it continued its operations.

Notifications from TikTok app during ban and after ban

President Donald Trump initially proposed the TikTok ban in August 2020 during his first term. He signed an executive order citing concerns over the app's terms of service, which allow sharing data with its parent company, ByteDance, partially owned by the Chinese government.

The company did not divest its US operations to a non-Chinese entity by the January 19 deadline established by the US Supreme Court. As a result, the service was banned, and users could not access their accounts. This situation left the "7 million creators" who depend on TikTok for their income in the dark about their future.

STATEMENT FROM TIKTOK:

In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170…

— TikTok Policy (@TikTokPolicy) January 19, 2025

Donald Trump stated on social media that he plans to reinstate TikTok and intends to sign an executive order today to delay the law's implementation. He also mentioned that companies assisting in running TikTok's operation after the deadline will face no legal repercussions.

Though it seems strange that the individual who sought to ban the app is now celebrated for allowing it, the US government continues to press ByteDance to either separate its US operations or halt the collection of significant sensitive data on Americans.

TikTok continues to be accessible worldwide in its usual markets, excluding countries where it is banned or no longer available, like India, Iran, Russia, and China, which uses a similar app called Douyin.

ByteDance has repeatedly indicated that disconnecting the app would be "extremely challenging." Analysts suggest that this process could span several years, regardless of the bipartisan legislation or the new president's unpredictable decisions.