Montana has become the first US state to entirely ban TikTok on all personal devices thanks to this historic legislation.
After lawmakers voted and enacted legislation imposing a TikTok ban for all personal devices in the state, Montana became the first US state to totally ban the short video streaming site TikTok.
Once this restriction is fully imposed, TikTok users in Montana will be unable to open the TikTok app on their phone, and app retailers will be instructed not to distribute the app in Montana.
This historic legislation represents yet another setback for TikTok, which is currently facing a slew of investigations and bans from governments all around the world. Many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom, have prohibited their government agencies from utilising TikTok on any government-owned equipment.
The rationale for these extensive probes and investigations is the application’s association with national security issues. Western nations believe the programme has ties to the Chinese government and, if desired, can easily spy on government equipment for the Chinese government.
These rumours concerning connections with the Chinese government arise from the fact that the Chinese government owns a small percentage of Bytedance, the parent firm of TikTok.
According to reports, the vote in Montana’s House was 54-43, with the legislation to ban TikTok winning by more than 11 votes, resulting in a state-wide ban on the Chinese programme.
While the Act was passed with a majority vote count, it is facing strong resistance from not only TikTok, but also many US activists.
“We believe that social media can be good for young people if they are designed for us,” said Zamaan Qureshi and Emma Lembke, Co-Chairs of Design it For Us, a coalition of youth activists platform. Bans like this one miss an important opportunity to address children’s safety and privacy concerns on these sites.”
TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter expressed disappointment with the outcome, stating that “the bill’s champions have admitted that they have no feasible plan for operationalizing this attempt to censor American voices and that the bill’s constitutionality will be decided by the courts.”
“We will continue to fight for Montana TikTok users and creators whose livelihoods and First Amendment rights are threatened by this egregious government overreach,” he continued.
