Montana, USA: A federal judge is set to hear arguments today (Thursday) in a case filed by TikTok and five Montana content creators, aiming to halt the state’s impending ban on the popular video-sharing app scheduled to take effect on January 1.
U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy of Missoula is presiding over the case and is not expected to provide an immediate ruling regarding the request for a preliminary injunction.
Montana made history by becoming the first state in the U.S. to enact a complete ban on TikTok, citing concerns that the Chinese government might gain access to user information through the app, given its parent company, ByteDance, is headquartered in Beijing. Content creators argue that this ban infringes upon their free speech rights and could potentially harm their businesses.
In response, TikTok contended in court filings that the state’s law was based on “unsubstantiated allegations.” The company argued that Montana could have imposed regulations on TikTok, such as limiting the types of data collected or mandating parental controls, instead of enforcing a total ban.
Governments in the Western world have expressed fears that the popular social media platform might jeopardize sensitive data and could potentially be used as a tool for spreading misinformation, providing the Chinese government access to critical information. Chinese law grants the government authority to compel companies to assist in intelligence gathering.
TikTok, currently in negotiations with the U.S. federal government regarding its future in the country, vehemently denies these allegations. However, concerns surrounding the issue persist.
In a recent unprecedented report on Chinese disinformation released by the U.S. State Department, ByteDance was accused of attempting to block potential critics of Beijing, including those outside China, from utilizing its platforms. The report highlighted that ByteDance kept an updated internal list identifying individuals blocked or restricted from its platforms, including TikTok, for reasons such as advocating for Uyghur independence.
More than half of U.S. states and the federal government have already banned TikTok on official devices, with the company branding these bans as “political theatre” and emphasizing the measures taken to protect U.S. data by storing it on Oracle servers.
The bill for banning TikTok in Montana was introduced to the state’s Legislature following an incident involving a Chinese spy balloon flying over the state. The proposed legislation seeks to prohibit TikTok downloads in the state and impose fines on entities, such as app stores or TikTok, for each instance of offering access to or downloads of the app.
The American Civil Liberties Union, its Montana chapter, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital privacy rights advocacy group, have submitted an amicus brief in support of the challenge. On the other hand, 18 attorneys general from predominantly Republican-led states are supporting Montana, urging the judge to allow the law’s implementation. Nonetheless, cybersecurity experts have expressed concerns about the potential challenges in enforcing the ban.
In their bid for a preliminary injunction, TikTok argued that the app has been in use since 2017 and allowing Montanans to continue using it will not harm the state. TikTok also pointed out that Montana did not provide any evidence of actual harm to its residents resulting from using the app, leading to a delay in the ban’s effective date until January 1, 2024.
