The end could be nigh for TikTok, well at least in America, with the Supreme Court expected to enact a law banning the short-form video platform from the USA. TikTok has been banned on government devices since December 2019, but with continued worries that its Chinese owners could be spying on our data, a full-blown ban is just around the corner.
While the Supreme Court is still deliberating on TikTok's future, there's word that President-elect Donald Trump is trying to save the app just one day before his inauguration.
TikTok is due to go dark in the U.S. on January 19, but as you'd expect, people are already trying to come up with ways around it.
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Like how we saw the recent ban of PornHub in Florida led to a spike in Virtual Private Network (VPN) usage, many think they can simply circumvent the TikTok ban with similar methods.
Americans are warned that while the VPN workaround will work in theory, doing so could lead to some serious ramifications.
Speaking to Dexerto, Neil Elan of Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP said accessing TikTok in any way after the ban is a bad idea. The business litigator explained: "If there is a law saying, 'You can’t do this,' and you do this by using a VPN to circumvent the law, then you are in violation of the law."
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Expanding on the repercussions of flouting the law to get your TikTok fix, Elan continued: “There would be a penalty and punishment, likely fines. I wouldn’t recommend using a VPN to get around the law, although I do know that it is common.
“Whether the lawmakers turn a blind eye or whether it’s strictly enforced is a risk that the user will take.”
Honing in on the U.S. government's security concerns, it’s thought to be a major factor in why authorities will be clamping down on prohibited TikTok usage:
"The main concern is national security. If a few people do it, then are large troves of US consumer data being accessed by the Chinese government? Unlikely.
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“But if there’s a growing base that continues to use it with the VPN, and the government knows about it, and those concerns still bloom, then there could be penalties enforced."
Elan says it depends on the law, whether someone ends up purchasing TikTok's U.S. operations, who will be there to enforce these laws, and how many people try to access it illegally. Still, he concluded, “Certainly the use of a VPN to circumvent the law would potentially render the user to fines and penalties.”
More than Donald Trump trying to delay the ban until he's got his feet back under the table at the White House, there are hopes that someone else could swoop in to buy TikTok's U.S. arm from the Chinese-owned ByteDance.
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Some major names have been thrown into the mix, but away from Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary, the big ones are Elon Musk and Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson. Rumors that Elon Musk could stump up for TikTok's potential $50 billion worth have been downplayed, while MrBeast has confirmed he's had 'talks' about acquiring TikTok. Whatever is coming next for TikTok, we'd advise you not to try to get around the law, just so you can see what Khaby Lame is up to.