TikTok and WeChat banned in the US! When apps in the App Store and Google Play disappear

US authorities have taken action after President Donald Trump’s deadline expired. Both TikTok and WeChat will be removed from the App Store and Google Play app stores starting September 20th. Although recently, TikTok and Oracle announced a partnership, through which the operations of the US social network would be under the supervision of the American company, this agreement apparently came too late compared to the September 15 deadline, previously set.

Americans ban TikTok and WeChat

Representatives of the US Department of Commerce have announced that as of September 20, the two applications will no longer be listed on app stores in America. However, it is unclear whether the applications will still work for users, or whether they will be blocked immediately nationwide. The actions will probably not be so drastic, at least not from the beginning. This is mainly because Trump offers hope for the two services, saying that he could lift this order if his conditions are met.

Trump’s conditions were for TikTok and WeChat to find local partners through which to ensure that US users’ data remains in the US and does not reach servers in China, the home country of the two applications. However, while TikTok has at least a chance to return to normal operations, WeChat will be directly affected as of September 20th.

For the chat application, the US authorities will ban the use of hosting, peering and distribution services in the US from September 20. For TikTok, these restrictions take effect on November 12.

“While the WeChat and TikTok threats are not identical, they are similar. Each application collects a lot of data from users, including internet traffic activity, location data, browsing and browsing history. Each is an active participant in the Chinese civil-military merger and is obliged to cooperate with the intelligence services of the Chinese Communist Party. This combination results in creating unacceptable risks to our national security caused by the use of these applications, ”said US Department of Commerce spokesmen.