Why is TikTok banned?

In January, a Republican senator, Josh Hawley of Missouri, introduced a bill to ban TikTok for all Americans after pushing for a measure passed in December as part of a spending package that would have banned the use of TikTok on all federal government-issued devices. A separate bipartisan bill introduced in December also sought to ban TikTok and targeted similar social media companies in countries such as Russia and Iran.

What is the Biden administration doing?

It has been largely quiet, though the White House just this week pointed to an ongoing review in response to questions about TikTok. For years, TikTok has been in confidential talks with the administration’s review body, the United States Committee on Foreign Investment, to answer questions about TikTok and ByteDance’s relationship with the Chinese government and its handling of user data. TikTok said it had heard almost nothing about the 90-page proposal it filed in August detailing how it plans to operate in the United States while addressing national security concerns.

Can the government ban an app?

Most of the existing TikTok bans have been imposed by governments and universities, which have the power to keep an app off their devices or networks.

Caitlin Chin of the Center for Strategic and International Studies said a broader government ban preventing Americans from using an app that allows them to share their views and art could face First Amendment legal challenges. After all, a large number of Americans, including elected officials and major news organizations like The New York Times and The Washington Post, are now making videos on TikTok.

“In democratic governments, the government cannot ban freedom of speech or expression without a very strong and personalized reason, and it’s just not clear that we have that yet,” Ms Chin said.

What if I already have TikTok on my phone when it gets banned?

It’s not clear exactly how apps are disabled on privately owned phones.

Ms. Chin said the United States could block TikTok from selling ads or updating its systems, essentially rendering it inoperable.

Apple and other app store companies block downloads of apps that no longer work. Apps that contain inappropriate or illegal content will also be banned, said Justin Cappos, a professor at New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering.