TikTok asks judge to block President Trump's ban on the app

(Image credit: TikTok)

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Source: TikTok (Image credit: Source: TikTok)

What you need to know

  • TikTok is seeking an injunction to prevent President Donald Trump from banning the app.
  • It has filed a legal challenge to the ban which will prevent users from downloading the app.
  • The ban is due to take effect this Sunday, September 27.

TikTok has filed a legal challenge against a ban on the app proposed by President Donald Trump which could see the app removed from app stores on Sunday, September 27.

As reported by TechCrunch Wednesday:

Earlier today, the company filed a motion to stop the Commerce Department from enforcing a ban against the popular social app. That ban was supposed to come into place on Sunday, but after the signing of the ByteDance/Oracle deal, it was delayed by a week, with additional delays expected as the deal closes in the coming weeks.

A lawsuit against President Trump and his administration was originally filed by TikTok on September 18, and parties have now filed for an injunction to stop the proposed ban by President Trump and the Department of Commerce.

A ban on downloads of the app was due to take place earlier this week, however, was stayed one week over reports the President had approved a deal between ByteDance and Oracle to sell the U.S. portion of TikTok.

In the filing, TikTok noted that it had made "extraordinary efforts to try to satisfy the government's ever-shifting demands and purported national security concerns, including through changes in the ownership and structure of [its] business, and [we] are continuing to do so."

The company further stated a ban would massively damage the company, precluding hundreds of millions of Americans from downloading the app. If further claims Trump and the Department of Commerce have exceeded their authority under existing legislation.

A similar ban targeting WeChat was recently blocked by a U.S. District court.

Stephen Warwick
News Editor

Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.

Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwarwick9