Montana’s TikTok Ban
In a move that signals an escalation in the cybersecurity cold war, Montana has enacted an unprecedented state-level ban on TikTok, the hugely popular social video app, with an implementation date in 2024. This ban doesn't just target the app, but extends to app stores like Google and Apple, preventing them from hosting TikTok. According to Montana's governor Greg Gianforte, the ban is aimed at protecting Montanans' personal and private data from the possible exploitation by the Chinese Communist Party.
This hostility towards TikTok, a China-based company owned by ByteDance, is reflective of larger global concerns. Various U.S. lawmakers have vocalized concerns that the app could be weaponized for surveillance or misinformation dissemination by the Chinese government, given a 2017 Chinese law that mandates Chinese companies to surrender data pertinent to national security. Similar bans on TikTok have been instituted in countries like India, highlighting the global concern over data privacy and national security
TikTok has, however, consistently denied these allegations, maintaining that the Chinese government has not requested any data, and in the event of such a request, they would resist compliance. The Georgia Institute of Technology produced a report in 2023 that found TikTok's data collection practices to be on par with other social media platforms like Facebook, suggesting that TikTok is not an outlier in data collection amongst tech companies.
Even the logistics of the ban’s implementation raise several critical technical and legal hurdles that could potentially undermine its efficacy and question its constitutionality. The current law expects TikTok, Google, and Apple to prevent Montana users from downloading or accessing the app. Cybersecurity experts, however, have long noted the complexity involved in geographically restricting app downloads. Furthermore, savvy users might leverage VPNs or other methods to bypass these restrictions, adding another layer of complexity to enforcement.
The potential consequences of the ban on the robust community of TikTok users in Montana, some of whom depend on the platform for their livelihoods or as an avenue for personal expression, is an aspect that warrants greater scrutiny. The ban is already being challenged legally by a group of TikTok creators who assert that it infringes on their First Amendment rights, arguing that Montana does not have the jurisdiction to regulate national security and ban speech. This point is further reinforced by the ACLU, which has described the ban as unconstitutional.
Drawing parallels with similar incidents in the past, in 2020, a federal court blocked the Trump administration's attempts to ban WeChat, another Chinese-owned app, and TikTok, arguing that such a ban would violate free speech rights and go beyond the powers of the presidency.
Montana's TikTok ban, thus, stands as a complex issue at the crossroads of cybersecurity, national security, and constitutional law. Even though the ban's intent is to safeguard the privacy of Montana's residents, its implementation faces significant obstacles, and its legality provokes intense constitutional debate. This ban is a microcosm of the broader geopolitical friction and economic competition between the U.S. and China, particularly visible in the digital landscape.
