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Is TikTok of any benefit to our society?

Is TikTok of any benefit to our society?

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Online audiovisual industry expands fast with rural areas driving force

The market size of China's online audiovisual industry, which includes short videos and livestreaming, has surpassed 1 trillion yuan ($138 billion) for the first time, with the majority of new users coming from rural areas, according to a report released on Wednesday.

The report, released at the China Online Audiovisual Conference in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, said that the market size of the online audiovisual industry, including long videos, short videos, livestreaming and audio, reached 1.1524 trillion yuan in 2023.

In 2022 and 2023, the number of online audiovisual users in rural China reached 299 million and 320 million, respectively, up12.6 percent and 6.8 percent year-on-year, far exceeding the growth rate of urban users during the same period.

Behind the colossal commercial scale are millions of professionals in related fields, highlighted by the fields of short videos and livestreaming in particular.

The report reveals that as of December 2023, the total number of short video accounts reached 1.55 billion, with 15.08 million professional streamers.

Major platforms update about 80 million short videos per day, with more than 3.5 million live broadcasts every day.

"The significant number of practitioners and the substantial market size are driving the online audio-visual sector to become a vital force in digital economic development," Li Nan, a Beijing-based short video business insider, told the Global Times on Thursday.

Moreover, livestreaming has shown outstanding performance in supporting e-commerce and cultural tourism development.

The report shows that 71.2 percent of users have purchased goods after watching short videos/livestreams, with 40.3 percent acknowledging that "short videos/livestreams have become their main consumption channel."

Furthermore, 44.4 percent of users frequently watch tourism/scenery-related short videos, up by 16.3 percent from 2022, while 27.9 percent of users "will travel to a certain destination because of watching short videos/livestreams."

In terms of short videos, micro-short dramas are becoming recognized by an increasing number of internet users as a platform for high-quality content creation and mainstream value dissemination.

As a form of drama with relatively short duration, typically ranging from a few minutes to a dozen minutes, micro-short dramas are characterized by concise narratives and simple plot structures, focusing on the climax and twists to attract audience attention.

This format often appears on social media platforms, short video applications and online streaming platforms, attracting viewers' attention due to its concise, easy-to-consume, and eye-catching characteristics.

According to the latest report, 39.9 percent of short video users frequently watch micro-short dramas, ranking second only to TV dramas/web dramas and movies/web movies, with 31.9 percent of users having paid for micro-short drama content.

www.globaltimes.cn

Online audiovisual industry expands fast with rural areas driving force - Global Times

www.globaltimes.cn
 
1.1524 trillion yuan in 2023, that's huge buddy. Digital media is the present and future now.
 

Expert warns of 'chilling reality' TikTok threat poses: 'China's greatest asymmetric advantage'​


China’s "infiltration" of civil discourse in the United States poses an "immediate" threat to Democracy and is one of the "greatest threats we face today" in terms of national security, according to an expert on China.

"TikTok is not just a technological concern, it is not just a social media problem, TikTok is today China's greatest asymmetric advantage against America," Michael Sobolik, author of the new book "Countering China’s Great Game: A Strategy for American Dominance," told Fox News Digital.

"It represents the most immediate threat to American democracy that the Chinese Communist Party poses."

China’s role in "infiltrating our civil discourse" through TikTok represents one of the "most important problem sets in US-China relations," Sobolik explained, because "you have about half of America on one app that the Chinese Communist Party controls, and they can manipulate public opinion and spread propaganda."
"It’s a huge problem."

Sobolik, a Senior Fellow in Indo-Pacific Studies at the American Foreign Policy Council, told Fox News Digital that 170 million Americans are on the social media platform with 150 million of them on the site for at least an hour a day. A large chunk of those users, Sobolik said, rely on the platform for news, which the Chinese government is using to its advantage.

"The Chinese Communist Party controls TikTok, because TikTok's parent company ByteDance is domiciled inside of China," Sobolik said. "As such, they must comply with any requests that they receive from Beijing to turn over U.S. user data, to censor content, or to boost content. They have no recourse of saying no to the CCP. There have already been documented instances of TikTok surveilling U.S. journalists to try to figure out who they were talking to inside of the company. ByteDance has already pledged its cooperation to work with Beijing to hone its algorithm to advance the CCP's interests."

Members of Congress have been debating over the past several months whether to ban TikTok in the United States or force the sale of the company to an entity outside of China. Opponents of the bills on the Republican side have argued that banning the popular social media app "goes against the First Amendment."

Sobolik flatly rejected that idea.

"None of this is a mystery," Sobolik said. "This is documented. There are instances of TikTok’s censoring content about Tibet, the Uyghurs, Tiananmen Square and other sensitive issues to the Chinese Communist Party. The concerns with TikTok have nothing to do with free speech. The concerns for TikTok are that an adversarial nation controls one of the biggest pillars of information in the United States today. And if you think that's only a theoretical concern, imagine if China goes to war with Taiwan. And then, as that is happening, floods TikTok with pro-CCP messages, with disinformation about what's happening, and tries to push a public opinion campaign that America should stay out and not do anything to help Taiwan."

"China has one of the strongest abilities to manipulate U.S. public opinion in its grasp today. This should be a chilling reality. This should send a shiver down the spines of every American."

Sobolik continued, "The content you see on TikTok may feel unique to you, but you are being fed content from an algorithm that is controlled by America's chief adversary. This is a Trojan horse inside of the United States, and it is high past time for members of Congress to take this seriously. To put the country first and to kick this Trojan horse out of America's walls. We cannot allow this app to continue to function under the control of the Chinese Communist Party."

"America has a gun pointed at its head every single day in the information realm. We have to take care of this issue and we must do it now. There are no constitutional concerns of any meaning here. This is a national security concern, and it is one of the greatest concerns that we face today."

It remains unclear whether Congress has the necessary political appetite to ban or dissolve TikTok, and Sobolik told Fox News Digital that he believes that question is "going to be one of the biggest tests for America."

"If we can fix this TikTok problem, that will be one of the most encouraging signs that we've seen in decades about our seriousness with protecting our liberty and our freedom and for opposing tyranny," Sobolik said. "If we let this problem go, if we don't fix it, we may as well go home and get out of the great power competition altogether.

"Because again, remember, protecting yourself is the bare minimum. Good defense might win NBA basketball championships, but good defense is the bare minimum. It's good housekeeping. You don't get a gold star for taking care of your own homeland. You get a gold star for going out in opposing authoritarian regimes. Cold wars are won by seizing the initiative and going on the offensive. If we cannot sever TikTok from CCP control, we have much bigger problems."

In a statement to Fox News Digital, a TikTok spokesperson said "multiple media outlets have reported" that "there is not a shred of evidence" to the "outlandish claims" that TikTok is a vessel of the Chinese government.

"The reality is the ban bill would trample the First Amendment rights of 170 million Americans and devastate 7 million small businesses nationwide," the spokesperson said.

www.foxnews.com

Expert warns of 'chilling reality' TikTok threat poses: 'China's greatest asymmetric advantage'

China expert Michael Sobolik spoke with Fox News Digital about the threat TikTok poses to the United States, which he wrote about in his book 'Countering China’s Great Game.'
www.foxnews.com www.foxnews.com
 

EU questions TikTok over new 'Lite' app in France, Spain​


The EU gave TikTok 24 hours to provide a risk assessment on its new 'Lite' app launched in France and Spain over concerns of its potential impact on children and users' mental health, the European Commission has said.

The new rewards app ‘TikTok Lite’ arrived in the two countries this month and allows users aged 18 and over to earn points that can be exchanged for goods like vouchers or gift cards.

The Commission said TikTok, owned by China's ByteDance, should have carried out the risk assessment before deploying the app and now wants "more details".

The demand "concerns the potential impact of the new 'Task and Reward Lite' programme on the protection of minors, as well as on the mental health of users, in particular in relation to the potential stimulation of addictive behaviour", it said.

The commission said in a statement it also wants to know what measures the platform has put in place to mitigate the risks identified.

The request for information was made under a new content moderation law known as the Digital Services Act (DSA), which has stringent rules for 22 of the world's biggest online platforms including TikTok.

The demand is a first step in a procedure and does not mean TikTok will face further action. That would depend on what information the company gives to the EU.

Alongside the 24-hour deadline for the risk assessment, TikTok must provide the other information by 26 April, the commission said.

The company said it would honour the request.

"We have already been in direct contact with the Commission regarding this product and will respond to the request for information," a TikTok spokesperson said.

This is not the first time TikTok is in the European Union's crosshairs.

In February, Brussels opened a formal probe under the DSA into TikTok over alleged breaches of its obligations to protect minors online.

Its focus is especially on whether the company is doing enough to address negative impacts on young people.

The European Commission has made similar requests for information from TikTok over other issues including the risks to upcoming EU elections in June from artificial intelligence.

www.rte.ie

EU questions TikTok over new 'Lite' app in France, Spain

The EU gave TikTok 24 hours to provide a risk assessment on its new 'Lite' app launched in France and Spain over concerns of its potential impact on children and users' mental health, the European Commission has said.
www.rte.ie www.rte.ie
 
The House votes for possible TikTok ban in the US, but don’t expect the app to go away anytime soon

The House passed legislation Saturday that would ban TikTok in the United States if the popular social media platform’s China-based owner doesn’t sell its stake within a year, but don’t expect the app to go away anytime soon.

The decision by House Republicans to include TikTok as part of a larger foreign aid package, a priority for President Joe Biden with broad congressional support for Ukraine and Israel, fast-tracked the ban after an earlier version had stalled in the Senate. A standalone bill with a shorter, six-month selling deadline passed the House in March by an overwhelming bipartisan vote as both Democrats and Republicans voiced national security concerns about the app’s owner, the Chinese technology firm ByteDance Ltd.

The modified measure, passed by a 360-58 vote, now goes to the Senate after negotiations that lengthened the timeline for the company to sell to nine months, with a possible additional three months if a sale is in progress.


apnews.com

The House votes for possible TikTok ban in the US, but don't expect the app to go away anytime soon

The House has passed legislation that would ban TikTok in the U.S. if the social media platform’s China-based owner doesn’t sell its stake within a year.
apnews.com apnews.com
 
Congress is finally set to approve a TikTok ban but it could still be years before it takes effect

TikTok’s fate in the U.S. has never been more in doubt after the House of Representatives approved a bill last weekend that gives its parent company two options: sell it to an approved buyer or see it banned.

Experts say the bill is now likely to be approved in the Senate, and President Joe Biden has signaled he would sign it.

But it could take years for the TikTok ban to actually go into effect, since its Chinese-owned parent company, ByteDance, is likely to challenge the statute in court.

And even if it survives a legal challenge, no one is quite sure what would happen next.

It would probably be several years from now.

According to the statute’s language, ByteDance would have nine months to divest and find an American buyer for TikTok once the bill is signed into law.
On top of that, the president can push back the deadline by an additional 90 days.

That means, without a sale, the soonest TikTok could shut down in the U.S. would be more than one year from now.


NBC News
 
Tiktok was needed for meta to get its house in order.
Reels and Ai are best things among meta product right now both came due to competition.

Unlike the chip and automobile companies Tiktok wasn’t even necessarily infringing any patents, they should be allowed to prosper but China can make no arguments due to their stupidity.
 

Blinken has steamed buns in China as furious Beijing stews over 'dangerous' $8billion U.S. aid package for Taiwan and bill that could lead to a TikTok ban​


Secretary of State Antony Blinken has touched down in China to soothe tensions with the nation, after Beijing called the Senate's approval of an $8billion aid package for Taiwan a 'dangerous situation.'

The package was part of a massive $95billion foreign aid bill that was passed by Congress last night, and is expected to be signed into law today by President joe Biden.

The Chinese government is also stewing over the legislation that will force TikTok to divest of its owner ByteDance and rejected allegations the app is a security threat.

The trip by President Joe Biden's top diplomat is aimed at ramping up pressure on China to drop its support for Russian in the Ukraine war.

But the late-night vote on the bill has added more friction to the already strained relations between Washington and Beijing.

China said the $8billion set aside to counter Chinese threats in Taiwan and the broader Indo-Pacific 'seriously violates' US commitments to China and 'sends a wrong signal to the Taiwan independence separatist forces'.

A spokesperson for the mainland's Taiwan Affairs Office added that Taiwan's ruling pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party, which won a third four-year presidential term in January, is willing to 'become a pawn for external forces to use Taiwan to contain China, bringing Taiwan into a dangerous situation'.

Taiwan's president-elect Lai Ching-te told a visiting congressional delegation that the aid package would 'strengthen the deterrence against authoritarianism in the West Pacific ally chain' and 'help ensure peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and also boost confidence in the region'.

China and the United States are the major players in the Indo-Pacific and Washington has become increasingly alarmed by Beijing´s growing aggressiveness in recent years toward Taiwan and Southeast Asian countries with which it has significant territorial and maritime disputes in the South China Sea.

The U.S. has strongly condemned Chinese military exercises threatening Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a renegade province and has vowed to reunify with the mainland by force if necessary. Successive U.S. administrations have steadily boosted military support and sales for Taiwan, much to Chinese anger.

A senior State Department official said last week that Blinken would 'underscore, both in private and public, America´s abiding interest in maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. We think that is vitally important for the region and the world.'

In the South China Sea, the U.S. and others have become increasingly concerned by provocative Chinese actions in and around disputed areas.

In particular, the U.S. has voiced objections to what it says are Chinese attempts to thwart legitimate maritime activities by others in the sea, notably the Philippines and Vietnam. That was a major topic of concern this month when Biden held a three-way summit with the prime minister of Japan and the president of the Philippines.

On Ukraine, which U.S. officials say will be a primary topic of conversation during Blinken's visit, the Biden administration said that Chinese support has allowed Russia to largely reconstitute its defense industrial base, affecting not only the war in Ukraine but posing a threat to broader European security.

'If China purports on the one hand to want good relations with Europe and other countries, it can´t on the other hand be fueling what is the biggest threat to European security since the end of the Cold War,' Blinken said last week.

China says it has the right to trade with Russia and accuses the U.S. of fanning the flames by arming and funding Ukraine. 'It is extremely hypocritical and irresponsible for the U.S. to introduce a large-scale aid bill for Ukraine while making groundless accusations against normal economic and trade exchanges between China and Russia,' Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said Tuesday.

On the Middle East, U.S. officials, from Biden on down, have repeatedly appealed to China to use any leverage it may have with Iran to prevent Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza from spiraling into a wider regional conflict.

He has spoken to his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, several times urging China to tell Iran to restrain the proxy groups it has supported in the region, including Hamas, Lebanon´s Hezbollah, Yemen´s Houthis and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria.

The senior State Department official said Blinken would reiterate the U.S. interest in China using 'whatever channels or influence it has to try to convey the need for restraint to all parties, including Iran.'

The U.S. and China are also at deep odds over human rights in China´s western Xinjiang region, Tibet and Hong Kong, as well as the fate of several American citizens that the State Department says have been 'wrongfully detained' by Chinese authorities, and the supply of precursors to make the synthetic opioid fentanyl that is responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans.

China has repeatedly rejected the American criticism of its rights record as improper interference in its internal affairs. Yet, Blinken will again raise these issues, according to the State Department official.

Another department official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity to preview Blinken's private talks with Chinese officials, said China had made efforts to rein in the export of materials that traffickers use to make fentanyl but that more needs to be done.

The two sides agreed last year to set up a working group to look into ways to combat the surge of production of fentanyl precursors in China and their export abroad. U.S. officials say they believe they had made some limited progress on cracking down on the illicit industry but many producers had found ways to get around new restrictions.

'We need to see continued and sustained progress,' the official said, adding that 'more regular law enforcement' against Chinese precursor producers 'would send a strong signal of China´s commitment to address this issue.'

China is also understood to be unhappy about the US bill's inclusion of a TikTok crackdown, which could lead to the video-sharing platform being banned in the US.

The foreign aid package includes several measures including TikTok divest from its Chinese-owned parent company ByteDance.

The House already passed a bill to force ByteDance to divest from TikTok, but the new catch-all legislation would give TikTok one year rather than six months to separate itself from China - or else be banned in the U.S.

TikTok has suggested the legislation amounts to a 'total ban in the United States,' hinting that ByteDance isn't interested in selling.

'It is unfortunate that the House of Representatives is using the cover of important foreign and humanitarian assistance to once again jam through a ban bill that would trample the free speech rights of 170 million Americans, devastate 7 million businesses, and shutter a platform that contributes $24 billion to the U.S. economy, annually,' a TikTok spokesperson told DailyMail on Saturday.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Blinken touches down in China after Senate passed $8bn Taiwan aid

China said the $8billion set aside to counter Chinese threats in Taiwan and the broader Indo-Pacific 'seriously violates' US commitments to China and 'sends a wrong signal to Taiwan
www.dailymail.co.uk www.dailymail.co.uk
 
TikTok CEO expects to defeat US ban: 'We aren't going anywhere'

TikTok's chief executive said on Wednesday the social media company expects to win a legal challenge to block legislation signed into law by President Joe Biden that he said would ban its popular short video app used by 170 million Americans.

"Rest assured - we aren't going anywhere," CEO Shou Zi Chew said in a video posted moments after Biden signed the bill that gives China-based ByteDance 270 days to divest TikTok's U.S. assets or face a ban. "The facts and the Constitution are on our side and we expect to prevail again."

Biden's signing sets a Jan. 19 deadline for a sale - one day before his term is set to expire - but he could extend the deadline by three months if he determines ByteDance is making progress. Biden is seeking a second term against former President Donald Trump.

"We don't want to see a ban," White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday. "This is about PRC ownership," she added, referring to the People's Republic of China.

In 2020, Trump was blocked by the courts in his bid to ban TikTok and Chinese-owned WeChat, a unit of Tencent (0700.HK), opens new tab, in the United States. Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, has reversed course and said on Monday that Biden was "pushing" for a ban on TikTok and would be the one responsible if a ban were imposed, urging voters to take notice.

"Make no mistake - this is a ban on TikTok," Chew said, emphasizing that TikTok would continue to operate as the company challenges the restrictions.

Many experts question if any potential buyer has the financial resources to buy TikTok and if China and U.S. government agencies would approve a sale.

Driven by widespread worries among U.S. lawmakers that China could access Americans' data or surveil them with the app, the bill was overwhelmingly passed late on Tuesday by the U.S. Senate. The U.S. House of Representatives approved it on Saturday.

The four-year battle over TikTok is a significant front in a war over the internet and technology between Washington and Beijing.

Last week, Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab said China had ordered it to remove Meta Platforms' (META.O), opens new tab WhatsApp and Threads from its App Store in China over Chinese national security concerns.


Reuters
 

ByteDance says it won’t sell TikTok business in US​


TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance said it will not sell the popular video sharing app to continue its business in the U.S. despite facing a potential ban under a law President Biden signed Wednesday.

The bill, included in a foreign aid package Biden signed, gives ByteDance up to a year to sell TikTok or be banned from operating in the U.S. The proposal was fueled by national security concerns raised by the supporters, who argued the Chinese government could compel TikTok to share U.S. user data.

It is the latest and most critical threat TikTok has faced in the U.S. yet — but the company is not backing down.

The company issued a statement on Toutiao, a news aggregation app ByteDance owns, dispelling a Thursday report by The Information that ByteDance was exploring options for selling TikTok in the U.S. without its algorithm, according to a copy of the statement reported by CNN.

“Foreign media reports that ByteDance is exploring the sale of TikTok are untrue,” ByteDance said in the statement.

“ByteDance doesn’t have any plan to sell TikTok,” it continued.

The Hill reached out to TikTok for comment.

Even if TikTok were purchased in the U.S., it would likely be different from the app users use today since Chinese export rules would regulate if the algorithm could be transferred, and the TikTok algorithm has been a key factor to its popularity among users.

The other route for TikTok to remain active in the U.S. is through a successful court case. TikTok announced Wednesday, immediately after Biden signed the law, that it would challenge it in court.

Other attempts to ban TikTok, both under the Trump administration and in states, have been blocked by courts.

thehill.com

ByteDance says it won’t sell TikTok business in US

TikTok’s Chinese parent company ByteDance said it will not sell the popular video sharing app to continue its business in the U.S. despite facing a potential ban under a law President Biden signed …
thehill.com thehill.com
 
China hints at retaliation after Biden signs Taiwan, TikTok legislation

China hinted on Monday that it could retaliate after U.S. President Joe Biden signed into law legislation to boost Taiwan's defences and seeks to get TikTok's Chinese owner to divest from the social media platform.

Biden signed the legislation on a military aid package on Wednesday, with most of the money going to Ukraine to help it fend off Russia's invasion and to Israel. He also signed a separate bill tied to the aid legislation that bans TikTok in the United States if its Chinese owner ByteDance fails to divest the app over the next nine months to a year.

Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian urged the United States not to implement the "negative, China-related" parts of the legislation.

"If the United States clings obstinately to its course, China will take resolute and forceful steps to firmly defend its own security and development interests," Lin said, without elaborating.

The United States is Taiwan's most important international backer and arms supplier even in the absence of formal diplomatic ties. China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, has repeatedly demanded arms sales stop.


Reuters
 
JaDed said:
Tiktok was needed for meta to get its house in order.
Reels and Ai are best things among meta product right now both came due to competition.

Unlike the chip and automobile companies Tiktok wasn’t even necessarily infringing any patents, they should be allowed to prosper but China can make no arguments due to their stupidity.
Click to expand...
The Chinese government has a 'Golden share' in Bytedance. I don't see how a sovereign country can allow a foreign government to run a Social media company collecting data about it's citizens. Too many long term implications.

It's not like the US is not allowing any Chinese owned companies in the States. This is a unique case.
 
Eight TikTok creators file lawsuit against U.S. government over potential ban

Eight TikTok creators filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government on Tuesday, arguing that a new law forcing a sale or ban the popular video-sharing app violates their First Amendment rights.

The law “bans an entire medium of communication and all the speech communicated through that medium, even though, at the very least, the vast majority of that speech is protected,” the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for Washington, D.C., states.

The 33-page complaint, first reported by The Washington Post, comes a week after TikTok filed its own lawsuit against the federal government, also citing constitutional concerns over free speech.



www.nbcnews.com

Eight TikTok creators file lawsuit against U.S. government over potential ban

The lawsuit argues that the new law threatens free expression.
www.nbcnews.com www.nbcnews.com
 
Billionaire Frank McCourt's Project Liberty forms consortium to bid for TikTok

Entrepreneur and former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt said on Wednesday his organization, Project Liberty, is forming a consortium to buy social media platform TikTok in the United States.

A law signed by President Joe Biden on April 24 gives the social media platform’s owner, ByteDance, until Jan. 19 next year to sell TikTok or face a ban.

The bill was passed by U.S. lawmakers on account of worries that China could access Americans’ data or surveil them through the app.

The White House had said it wants to see Chinese-based ownership ended on national security grounds but not a ban on TikTok.

Project Liberty, working with Guggenheim Securities, law firm Kirkland & Ellis, technologies, academics and others, proposed to migrate the platform to a digital open-source protocol.

Inventor of the World Wide Web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, and David Clark, senior research scientist at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, are among the supporters of the bid, the organization said.

Project Liberty had launched the open-source Decentralized Social Networking Protocol in 2021, establishing a shared social graph that is not dependent on a specific application or a centralized platform.

The organization encompasses work of the Project Liberty Institute, with an international partner network that includes academic institutions and a for-profit arm that includes a technology team developing digital infrastructure.

www.nbcnews.com

Billionaire Frank McCourt's Project Liberty forms consortium to bid for TikTok

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, and David Clark, a senior research scientist at the MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, are among the bid's supporters.
www.nbcnews.com www.nbcnews.com
 

Karachi teenager dies while making TikTok video​


A teenage student, who worked at a call centre in Karachi’s Liaquatabad, was shot and killed himself accidentally while filming a TikTok video, police said Saturday.

The Super Market police said that the victim was identified as 16-year-old Abdullah Mehmood.

The police said that Mehmood along with his friend was filming a TikTok video with pistol which went off, killing youth on the site.

The incident was occurred on Friday evening, said police, adding that his body was taken to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for medico-legal formalities.

Following the incident, the police officials sealed the call center.

This is not the first time that a life has been lost while filming a short videos. Earlier in 2020, a 13-year-old boy in Karachi lost his life while making a video for TikTok.

arynews.tv

Karachi teenager dies while making TikTok video

KARACHI: A teenage student, who worked at a call centre in Karachi’s Liaquatabad, was shot and killed himself accidentally while filming a TikTok video,
arynews.tv arynews.tv
 
TikTok ban lifted as New Caledonia emergency ends

France has lifted a ban on the TikTok social media app in New Caledonia, two weeks after it was imposed in a bid to stop the spread of rioting.

The decision follows the end of a state of emergency, imposed when tensions spilled over this month on the tiny French-Pacific territory, and indigenous Kanaks protested over planned electoral reforms.

Seven people have been killed and hundreds more hurt since violence erupted in the archipelago between Australia and Fiji.

The French government had suggested earlier that the Chinese app TikTok was being used to spread disinformation, and it accused Beijing and Azerbaijan of interfering in the crisis. Many TikTok users were able to get around the ban by using VPN web-based addresses outside New Caledonia.

Although the protests have not been called off and an overnight curfew remains in place in New Caledonia, the French government decided not to extend the state of emergency on Tuesday.

France has deployed some 3,500 security forces personnel to maintain calm and the international airport in the capital Nouméa will remain shut until at least Sunday. However, tensions have calmed on the streets since President Emmanuel Macron made the 17,000km (10,600-mile) trip to the archipelago and promised not to force through any reforms to New Caledonia's voting system.

New Caledonia has a population of about 300,000 people, including 112,000 indigenous Kanaks.

In a statement on Wednesday, the French high commission in Nouméa said that the continuing presence of police and gendarmes on the ground meant that calm was returning to New Caledonia and that the ban on Tiktok could be lifted.

The ban, unprecedented in France, had prompted several groups to challenge what they condemned as an attack on freedom of communication and information. However, authorities said TikTok had been used to spread incitement and hatred.

French MP Claude Malhuret warned that foreign interference was also a problem: "It's time to end our state of denial - we have to protect ourselves from it."

France has accused Azerbaijan in particular of backing separatists in New Caledonia, by flooding social media with what it said were misleading images. Azerbaijan rejected the French allegations and accused Paris of "neo-colonialist policies".


BBC
 
Security guard kills TikToker over filming him in Karachi

In a tragic incident, a young man, who was making a video for a social media platform, was shot and killed by a security guard in Karachi, ARY News reported.

The police said that the security guard, identified as Ahmed Gul, 35, opened fire on Saad Ahmed, 24, while he was making a TikTok video near Sereena Mobile Mall in the Buffer Zone area of Karachi.

According to police, the security guard stopped the young man and then opened fire on him.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Central said that the incident occurred within the limits of Taimooria police station and the security guard has been arrested.

The SSP said that in the initial interrogation, the guard claimed that Saad was making gestures toward him while recording the video.

According to the police, the guard is an employee of a private security company whose ‘222’ was seized. The police said that the weapon used in the incident is recovered while further investigation is underway.


ARY News
 
Youtube is good , Tiktok is a joke, the amount of people that are into being “influencer” nowadays is a joke.
 
Mizzy: TikTok prankster given community order after stealing woman's phone and fleeing police

A TikTok prankster has been given a community order and ordered to pay a fine after snatching a phone out of a woman's hand while riding an e-bike in central London.

Mizzy, whose real name is Bacari-Bronze O'Garro, was riding a Lime bike on 15 June 2022 when he stole the £1,000 iPhone as the woman was texting, Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court heard.

Police officers in the area pursued the teenager, who was 17 at the time, after they "noticed Mr O'Garro cycling in a way that they deemed him to be trying to get away from something", prosecutor Amy Gault said.

He was later arrested and in April was found guilty of theft.

Sentencing the teenager, Judge Michael Oliver gave O'Garro, now 19, a 12-month community order and said he must pay £500 in compensation to the victim.

The community orders requires O'Garro to complete 100 hours of unpaid work and 15 days of rehabilitation activity.

The judge said the sentence will "serve to punish you and make reparation to the community at large".


SKY News
 
TikTok faces fresh US pressure over child privacy

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has referred a complaint against TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance over potential violations of children's privacy to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The FTC says its own investigation "uncovered reason to believe" that the firms "are violating or are about to violate the law".

In a statement to BBC News, a TikTok spokesperson said they were disappointed by the decision.

The case is separate from legislation passed earlier this year to ban TikTok in the US if ByteDance does not sell the business.

The regulator said its investigation focused on potential violations of the FTC Act and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

The FTC also said it does not usually announce that it has referred a complaint to the DOJ but in this instance felt doing so was in the public interest.

COPPA governs the collection, use and disclosure of personal information by online services about children under 13-years-old.

The FTC Act targets “unfair or deceptive acts or practices” by companies.

In response, a TikTok spokesperson said the company disagreed with the allegations and that it had "been working with the FTC for more than a year to address its concerns."

"We're disappointed the agency is pursuing litigation instead of continuing to work with us on a reasonable solution," they added.

A DOJ spokesperson told BBC News they "cannot comment on the substance of the referral from the FTC against TikTok."

"Consistent with our normal approach, the Justice Department consulted with FTC in advance of this referral and will continue to do so as we consider the claims," they added.

The FTC's announcement adds to the growing pressure faced by TikTok in the US.

In April, President Joe Biden signed into law a bill that gave ByteDance a maximum of a year to sell the app or face a ban in the country.

That means the deadline is likely to come some time in 2025, after the winner of the 2024 presidential election takes office.

The law was introduced to address concerns that TikTok might share user data with Chinese authorities - claims the company has denied.

In May, TikTok filed a lawsuit aiming to block that legislation, arguing it is an "extraordinary intrusion on free speech rights" of the company and its 170 million American users.

BBC
 
TikTok parent company silently launches new Instagram competitor

ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of the video-sharing app TikTok, has quietly unveiled a new app called "Whee", drawing comparisons to Meta's Instagram.

According to a report by Android Police, the new app is currently available for download in over a dozen countries, including India and Brazil, but it is not yet accessible in the United States.

Attempts to log in after somehow downloading the app from the Google Play Store in the US result in an error message, and even using a virtual private network (VPN) proved unsuccessful, according to the report.

However, according to screenshots of the app, Whee presents a familiar interface, reminiscent of Instagram, but with a more intimate twist, specifically tailored for sharing photos visible only to designated friends.

www.geo.tv

TikTok parent company silently launches new Instagram competitor

ByteDance, the Chinese parent company of the video-sharing app TikTok, has quietly unveiled a new app called Whee, drawing comparisons to Meta's Instagram.According to a report by Android Police, the new app is currently available for...
www.geo.tv www.geo.tv
 

TikTok executive Govind Sandhu diagnosed with stage 4 cancer at age 38​


Govind Sandhu opens up about his personal health.

The head of TikTok Australia’s Global Music Partnerships revealed that he has been diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

“This wasn’t exactly part of my five-year plan,” Govind said in a recent Instagram video.

“I thought I was in the best shape of my life, the healthiest I’ve ever been. A Crossfitter who runs ultra-marathons and marathons lives and breathes training, optimizes sleep and recovery, supplements, nutrition.”

The 38-year-old mentioned that he returned to Sydney in April after spending weeks training in Bali for a marathon. It wasn't until the day after the half marathon in May that he began experiencing symptoms, prompting him to visit the doctor the following day.

“I just got really bad flu-like symptoms,” Govind explained in another video. “In particular, really bad body aches, as well as at the back of my neck all the way down to my shoulder. That night, I had wild body sweats, which would wake me up throughout the night, and I’d be absolutely drenched.”

The executive has been keeping fans informed about his cancer battle, which will involve six rounds of chemotherapy administered every 21 days.

“Daily movement,” he said on Instagram Stories July 3. “A day after cycle two—a little bit of the chemo brain, AKA the brain fog, but not feeling too bad, all things considered. I slept OK, the bowels are moving, which was a bit of an issue straight after cycle one.”

tribune.com.pk

TikTok executive Govind Sandhu diagnosed with stage 4 cancer at age 38 | The Express Tribune

“This wasn’t exactly part of my five-year plan,” Govind Sandhu revealed in an Instagram video.
tribune.com.pk tribune.com.pk
 
TikTok removes 20.2m videos in Pakistan for breaching community guidelines

Social media platform TikTok on Monday said it took action against over 20.2 million videos in Pakistan in the first quarter of the year for breaching community guidelines, underscoring its resolve to combat violations effectively.

During the January-March period of 2024, TikTok’s proactive measures led to the removal of 166,997,307 videos worldwide, representing about 0.9 per cent of all videos uploaded on the platform.

A substantial portion of these, 129,335,793 videos, were identified and removed through automated detection technologies, while 6,042,287 videos were reinstated upon further review said TikTok Q1 2024 Community Guidelines Enforcement Report.

In its continuous effort to foster a secure and positive online environment, TikTok has unveiled its latest Community Guidelines Enforcement Report for the first quarter of 2024.

This release highlights TikTok’s unwavering commitment to transparency, safety, and inclusivity, reflecting its dedication to building trust and ensuring a safe platform for its global community.

In a bid to enhance transparency, TikTok has now disclosed the number of comments removed and filtered by our comment safety tools for the first time. TikTok has removed and filtered 976,479,946 comments using comment safety tools during this three-month period.

Moreover, TikTok aggressively pursued spam accounts and related content, implementing robust measures to prevent the proliferation of automated spam accounts.

Notably, approximately 93.9pc of videos that violated the guidelines were removed within 24 hours of posting, and the proactive removal rate for the quarter stood impressively at 99.8pc globally.

In a global effort to safeguard younger users, TikTok also deleted 21,639,414 accounts suspected of belonging to individuals under the age of 13.

TikTok’s Community Guidelines are meticulously crafted to cultivate an environment that is safe, inclusive, and authentic for all users, without exceptions. The guidelines are enforced uniformly across all content and users, with TikTok striving for consistency and fairness in its enforcement actions.

Leveraging advanced technology and human oversight, TikTok efficiently identifies, reviews, and addresses content that contravenes its guidelines. The periodic publication of the Community Guidelines Enforcement Report offers insights into the scale and nature of content and account actions, underscoring TikTok’s commitment to full transparency.


ARY News
 

TikTok owner loses appeal against EU 'gatekeeper' label​


The Chinese owner of TikTok, ByteDance, on Wednesday lost its appeal against its categorization by the European Commission as a "digital gatekeeper."

The EU General Court in Luxembourg ruled that the designation was warranted under the European Union's new Digital Markets Act (DMA) because short video app TikTok exceeded relevant thresholds including global market value and the number of EU users.

Labeled companies are prevented from forcing users in the bloc to consent to have access to a service or certain functionalities.

What did the EU court find?

ByteDance had argued that its global market value largely came from China, rather than the EU.

It also said TikTok does not operate an exponential user expansion model and that it was acting as a "challenger" to digital monopolies operated by established platforms such as Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, and Alphabet, which owns Google. Both companies are also designated as "gatekeepers."

But the EU General Court rejected those arguments, finding that TikTok could no longer be considered a "challenger" on the market, unlike when it joined back in 2018.

The judges concluded that TikTok had "succeeded in increasing its number of users very rapidly and exponentially" since then, and that its large number of European users does indeed contribute to its global market value.

What is the reaction to the ruling?

A ByteDance spokesperson said the group was "disappointed with this decision" and still insisted that TikTok is a "challenger" to existing market players.

The spokesperson reiterated that TikTok had already taken "measures to comply with the relevant obligations" required by the DMA since March.

ByteDance has two months and 10 days to appeal the decision at the EU's top court, the European Court of Justice.

Meanwhile, the European Consumer Organization (BEUC) welcomed the "good news," saying: "The social medium needs to get consent from millions of TikTok users before their personal data can be used for personalized ads."

As well as ByteDance, the DMA also applies the operations of US tech giants Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta and Microsoft within the European Union, as well as, since May, the Dutch accommodation reservation platform Booking.

www.dw.com

TikTok owner loses appeal against EU 'gatekeeper' label – DW – 07/17/2024

Chinese firm ByteDance, which owns TikTok, has lost its appeal against a European Union decision to designate the company a digital as "gatekeeper." The label was applied under the EU's new Digital Markets Act.
www.dw.com www.dw.com
 
TikTok HQ staff hit by mass food poisoning incident

Dozens of staff at the Singapore office of TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, have been hospitalised in an apparent food poisoning outbreak.

Health and food safety officials in the city state are investigating the incident, which left 60 people with symptoms of gastroenteritis on Tuesday. Fifty seven of them were treated in hospital.

ByteDance has also said it is looking into what caused its employees to fall ill.

The BBC understands that no food is prepared or cooked at the ByteDance offices and that it uses third party caterers to supply food.

Seventeen ambulances were sent to the building in Singapore's business district to treat those who had fallen ill, according to local media reports.

"We take the health and safety of our employees very seriously and have taken immediate steps to support all affected employees, including working with emergency services to provide care," a ByteDance spokesperson told the BBC.

"We are investigating the matter and are working with the relevant authorities on this."

"Food operators must play their part by adhering to good food safety practices" said the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) in a joint statement with the city-state's Ministry of Health.

"SFA will not hesitate to take enforcement action against errant food operators," the statement added.

Founded in 2012 by Chinese entrepreneurs, ByteDance had its first major success with short video app Douyin in China. A year later, it launched TikTok, an international version of Douyin.

TikTok, which is not available in China, has more than a billion active users around the world.

It is now run by a limited liability company based in Singapore and Los Angeles but is essentially owned by ByteDance.

BBC
 
U.S. Sues TikTok Over Child Privacy Violations

The Justice Department sued TikTok on Friday, accusing it of illegally collecting children’s data and escalating a long-running battle between the U.S. government and the Chinese-owned app.

TikTok broke the law by gathering personal information from users under the age of 13 without their parents’ permission, according to the government’s complaint. The company knowingly allowed children under 13 to create and use TikTok accounts, the government said, and frequently failed to honor parents’ requests to delete their children’s accounts.

The lawsuit, which was filed in a federal court in Southern California, said those practices violated both the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, a law that restricts the online tracking of children, and a 2019 agreement between TikTok and the government in which the company pledged to notify parents before collecting children’s data and remove videos from users under 13 years old.

The suit, which also names TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance, asks for the court to fine the companies over the violations.

The government said in the complaint that it was suing to “put an end to TikTok’s unlawful massive-scale invasions of children’s privacy.”

“We disagree with these allegations, many of which relate to past events and practices that are factually inaccurate or have been addressed,” Alex Haurek, a spokesman for TikTok, said in a statement. “We are proud of our efforts to protect children, and we will continue to update and improve the platform.”

The lawsuit is the latest confrontation between the U.S. government and TikTok, which claims more than 170 million users in the United States. This year, President Biden signed a law that would force a sale or a ban of the app by the end of January because of national security concerns, and TikTok has sued to stop the government’s plan.

Separately, lawmakers and regulators have accused the app of creating an online ecosystem that leaves children at risk. In January, senators grilled TikTok’s chief executive, Shou Chew, alongside other tech executives over online safety concerns. TikTok is the second-most popular social media site among teenagers after YouTube, with 58 percent saying they visit it daily, according to the Pew Research Center.

TikTok says it has committed thousands of employees and billions of dollars to making its platform safe to use. In January, Mr. Chew told lawmakers that people under 16 on TikTok did not have access to direct messaging and that their accounts were automatically set to private. He also said only TikTok users who were 18 or older were able to host livestreams.

“I firmly believe that our industry’s most fundamental responsibility is to provide a safe and secure online space for our community,” he told the lawmakers.

Regulators and lawmakers have taken an increasingly tough stance on children’s privacy in recent months. On Tuesday, senators passed the Kids Online Safety Act, a bill that would require social media platforms including TikTok to do more to protect minors. The Senate also voted in favor of a second proposal to strengthen online privacy rules for children. It is not clear whether the House will take up the package of legislation.

TikTok has also faced scrutiny globally over child protection. The European Union fined TikTok 345 million euros in September for failing to protect the privacy of young users. In April 2023, a British regulator fined the app after it found that more than a million children under the age of 13 had signed up for its service.

The lawsuit filed Friday is the result of a lengthy Federal Trade Commission investigation into TikTok’s practices with minors. The complaint said millions of TikTok’s U.S. users were under 13, citing an internal analysis from the social media company.

Some of the new allegations in the lawsuit stem from a TikTok offering called Kids Mode, a setting for those under 13 that the company says limits data collection and offers curated videos to children.

In the complaint, the Justice Department said that even when TikTok users were logged in with that setting, the app collected their email addresses and other personal information. The government said TikTok compiled information about children using the app based on data like their IP addresses and information unique to their devices, then shared some of that data with Facebook and a marketing firm to help lure young users back to TikTok after their use had declined.

The children’s privacy law says the collection of such data can be used only to support an online service’s internal operations.

The company also failed in checking to make sure that underage users weren’t on the platform, the government said. TikTok representatives reviewing accounts spent an average of only five to seven seconds evaluating whether each profile belonged to a child, and the content moderation team that oversaw the identification and deletion of under-13 accounts numbered, at least for a period, fewer than 24 people, according to the filing.

TikTok’s own employees had raised concerns about its practices with underage child accounts and challenges in deleting the profiles, it added.

The government also said TikTok broke an agreement it reached with the F.T.C. over privacy violations in 2019. At the time, the agency accused the lip-syncing and dancing app Musical.ly — which was acquired and combined with TikTok — of breaking the law by collecting personal information about children under 13.

TikTok settled with the F.T.C. over the allegations that year by paying a record $5.7 million fine and agreeing to remove videos made by children under 13. It also agreed that the F.T.C. could run follow-up investigations to make sure it was complying with the settlement.

The F.T.C. said in a statement in June that it had investigated TikTok for potential violations of its earlier legal settlement as well as additional violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. It referred the case to the Justice Department — leading to the lawsuit filed on Friday.

If TikTok lost in court or settled with the government, it could be forced to pay a major fine, said David Vladeck, a former top consumer protection official for the F.T.C.

“This will be a billion-dollar civil penalty,” he said.

Mr. Vladeck said it was notable that TikTok had not done more to address the concerns laid out in the lawsuit, especially given it was under immense pressure from the government already.

“That’s sort of astonishing — or hubris,” he said.

SOURCE:https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/02/technology/tiktok-doj-child-privacy.html
 
Am I the only one who never ever downloaded this useless app and watched video on it???
 

Sixth-grader TikTok girl abducted from home in Sukkur​


A 6th-grade student and TikToker, Roshni Ali Lakho was abducted by individuals belonging to her own Lakho community after a dispute with her family.

This allegation was made by Roshni's mother, Nawabzadi Lakho, father Ghulam Nabi Lakho, and her grandmother Hakiman Lakho during a press conference on Wednesday.

They stated that they had a dispute with some individuals from their community, who then forcibly entered their home, subjected them to violence, and abducted their daughter Roshni Lakho.

They expressed fear that their daughter might be killed and that the accused are threatening to kill them and implicate them in false cases.

They demanded that the SSP Shaheed Benazirabad take notice of the case and ensure the immediate recovery of the abducted girl.

tribune.com.pk

Sixth-grader TikTok girl abducted from home in Sukkur | The Express Tribune

Roshni Ali Lakho’s family says police reluctant to file case against nominated culprits
tribune.com.pk tribune.com.pk
 
Six more police officers suspended over TikTok videos in uniform

Karachi Police Chief Javed Alam Odho suspended six police officials, including two women, for using TikTok while in uniform during duty hours, ARY News reported on Thursday.

A formal suspension notification has been issued after the officials was found recording and uploading videos on social media platforms during duty hours, violating police protocols.

This action comes as part of the police department’s efforts to maintain discipline and prevent misconduct among officers, particularly when it involves the misuse of social media during duty hours.

The Karachi Police are taking a firm stance against any activities that compromise the professionalism expected from its personnel.

Earlier this week, a lady constable has been suspended from service over making TikTok video in a police uniform in Karachi.

According to details, a TikTok video of constable Maria Gill went viral on social media after which DIG South Syed Asad Raza took notice of the videotape and ordered suspension.

Maria, a female constable, is deputed at Gizri police station in Karachi. DIG South said the police is a professional institution and personnel cannot be allowed for such ‘irresponsible’ behaviour.

She demanded of the authorities to review the decision and provide her justice.


ARY News
 
Sindh Police suspends another 12 officers for ‘inappropriate’ social media videos

Sindh Police on Friday announced the immediate suspension of 12 more of its officers on “inappropriate viral videos on different social media platforms”.

Inspector General (IG) of Police Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon ordered the suspension of the officers for posting videos on TikTok, as per an official post from Sindh Police on Facebook.

The development comes a day after Sindh Police suspended 6 officers for “making TikTok videos while wearing police uniform”.


www.brecorder.com

Sindh Police suspends another 12 officers for ‘inappropriate’ social media videos

Sindh Police on Friday announced the immediate suspension of 12 more of its officers on “inappropriate viral videos...
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Tiktok’s US future hangs in balance at federal court​


TikTok will attempt to convince a federal court on Monday that a law requiring the video-sharing app to divest from its Chinese ownership or face a ban in the United States is unconstitutional.

The fate of Americans’ access to TikTok has become a prominent issue in the country’s political debate, with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump opposing any ban of the wildly popular app.

Democratic President Joe Biden, whose vice president Kamala Harris is running against Trump, signed the law that gives TikTok until January to shed its Chinese ownership or be expelled from the US market.

ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, has stated it has no plans to sell TikTok, leaving the app’s legal appeal -- focused on US guarantees for free speech -- as its only option for survival.

A ban would likely provoke a strong response from the Chinese government and further strain US-China relations.

A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit will hear arguments from TikTok, ByteDance, and a group of users.

They will primarily contend that the law violates free speech rights.

The judges will decide the case in the coming weeks or months, but regardless of their decision, the case is likely to reach the US Supreme Court.

“There is no question: The Act will force a shutdown of TikTok by January 19, 2025,” TikTok’s appeal stated, “silencing those who use the platform to communicate in ways that cannot be replicated elsewhere.”

TikTok also argued that even if divestiture were possible, the app “would still be reduced to a shell of its former self, stripped of the innovative and expressive technology that tailors content to each user.”

TikTok asserts that “the Constitution is on our side,” as it pushes for a ruling that would favor the app and its 170 million American users.

The US government counters that the law addresses national security concerns, not speech, and that ByteDance cannot claim First Amendment rights in the United States.

“Given TikTok’s broad reach within the United States, the capacity for China to use TikTok’s features to achieve its overarching objective to undermine American interests creates a national-security threat of immense depth and scale,” the US Justice Department wrote in its filing.

The US argues that ByteDance could and would comply with Chinese government demands for data about US users, or yield to Chinese government pressure to censor or promote content on the platform.

‘Vote for Trump’

TikTok first faced scrutiny under former president Trump’s administration, which tried unsuccessfully to ban it. That effort was halted when a federal judge temporarily blocked Trump’s move, citing in part the potential infringement of free speech rights.

Trump has since changed his position.

“For all of those that want to save TikTok in America, vote for Trump,” he said in a video post last week.

In a measure of the app’s popularity, Biden’s reelection campaign created a TikTok account earlier this year.

Biden has since stepped aside from his reelection bid, but Harris, running in his place, also maintains a presence on the app, having embraced social media as a means to communicate with younger voters.

The new effort signed by Biden was designed to overcome the previous legal hurdles Trump faced, but some experts believe the US Supreme Court will have difficulty allowing national security considerations to outweigh free speech protections.

Much of the US side’s national security arguments are sealed, which “complicates efforts to evaluate” them, said professor Carl Tobias of the University of Richmond School of Law.

“However, the US Supreme Court has generally been very cautious about accepting national security arguments when government regulation restricts First Amendment rights, especially involving the internet,” he added.

 
TikTok sued for 'wreaking havoc' on teen mental health

More than a dozen states in the US have sued TikTok, accusing the social media platform of helping to drive a mental health crisis among teenagers.

A bipartisan group of 14 attorneys general from across the country allege that the company uses addictive features to hook children to the app and that it has intentionally misled the public about the safety of prolonged use.

TikTok called the lawsuit "disappointing" and said it believed many of the claims were "inaccurate and misleading".

The platform is already battling a law passed by Congress in April that would ban it from the US, unless Chinese parent company Bytedance agreed to a sale.

"TikTok knows that compulsive use of and other harmful effects of its platform are wreaking havoc on the mental health of millions of American children and teenagers," said the lawsuit filed in New York on Tuesday.

"Despite such documented knowledge, TikTok continually misrepresents its platform as 'safe' [and] 'appropriate for children and teenagers'."

New York Attorney General Letitia James said young people across the country had died or been injured doing TikTok "challenges" and many others were feeling "more sad, anxious and depressed because of TikTok's addictive features".

She cited a 15-year-old boy, who died in Manhattan while “subway surfing” - riding on top of a moving subway car. His mother later found TikTok videos of such activity on his phone, she said.

“TikTok claims that their platform is safe for young people, but that is far from true," Ms James said in a statement announcing the action.

The lawsuit singles out certain features as problematic: alerts that disrupt sleep; videos that vanish, driving users to check the platform frequently; and beauty filters that allow users to augment their appearance.

Though TikTok has promoted tools aimed at helping people limit their screen-time or resetting what content they are served, it has misrepresented their effectiveness, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuits were filed by 13 states separately and in the District of Columbia, where the attorney general also accused the company of running an unlicensed money transmission business via its "virtual currency" offering.

TikTok said in a statement on Tuesday: "We strongly disagree with these claims, many of which we believe to be inaccurate and misleading.

"We're proud of and remain deeply committed to the work we've done to protect teens and we will continue to update and improve our product."


www.bbc.com

TikTok sued for 'wreaking havoc' on teen mental health

A bipartisan group of 14 attorneys general accuse the company of using addictive features to hook children.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
 

TikTok owner sacks intern for sabotaging AI project​


TikTok owner, ByteDance, says it has sacked an intern for "maliciously interfering" with the training of one of its artificial intelligence (AI) models.

But the firm rejected claims about the extent of the damage caused by the unnamed individual, saying they "contain some exaggerations and inaccuracies".

It comes after reports about the incident spread over the weekend on social media.

The Chinese technology giant's Doubao ChatGPT-like generative AI model is the country's most popular AI chatbot.

"The individual was an intern with the [advertising] technology team and has no experience with the AI Lab," ByteDance said in a statement.

"Their social media profile and some media reports contain inaccuracies."

Its commercial online operations, including its large language AI models, were unaffected by the intern's actions, the company added.

ByteDance also denied reports that the incident caused more than $10m of damage by disrupting an AI training system made up of thousands of powerful graphics processing units (GPU).

Aside from firing the person in August, ByteDance said it had informed the intern's university and industry bodies about the incident.

ByteDance operates some of the world's most popular social media apps, including TikTok and its Chinese-equivalent Douyin.

It is widely seen as a leader when it comes to algorithm development due to how appealing its apps are to users.

Like many of its peers in China and around the world, the social media giant is investing heavily in AI.

It uses the technology to power its Doubao chatbot as well as many other applications, including a text-to-video tool called Jimeng.

www.bbc.com

TikTok owner sacks intern for sabotaging AI project

Chinese technology giant ByteDance denied reports that the incident caused more than $10m of damage.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
 
Woman held for murdering husband in Mandi Bahauddin: police

A man was shot dead in front of his family in Punjab’s Mandi Bahauddin district, with the victim’s wife allegedly conspiring to kill him and pretending that the incident was a robbery, police officials said.

According to a video statement by Sub-Inspector Muhammad Akram Hanjan, the Station House Officer of Pahtriyaanwali Police Station, the victim, Muhammad Afzal, allegedly “pressured his wife to undress and interact with users online to make money”.

“Meanwhile, the woman connected with another user called Usman, who was residing abroad and their relationship progressed,” the SHO added. “She wanted to marry him, but could not get a divorce from her husband.”

The SHO added in his statement that the woman began conspiring to kill Afzal, with Usman allegedly sending her Rs50,000 to buy a pistol. She also enlisted the help of her brother and a friend to plot the murder.

According to a first information report (FIR) dated October 21, Afzal was riding his motorcycle with his wife and children when he was confronted by his wife’s brother and another accomplice.

The FIR added that the suspected shooters forced the woman and children off the bike, before snatching two mobile phones and Rs1,000 from the victim and shooting him dead.

“They shot him dead in front of his wife and children before fleeing the scene,” SHO Pahtriyaanwali said in his statement. “The woman portrayed the incident as a robbery and filed a murder and robbery case at Pahtriyaanwali Police Station.”

He added that the police took the deceased’s body and transferred it to a government hospital for an autopsy, later handing it over to his heirs.

According to the SHO, Mandi Bahauddin District Police Officer (DPO) Ahmed Mohiuddin also joined in the investigation. “Upon examining the woman’s phone, we found that she had been in contact with the suspects while she was on the way to the crime scene,” the SHO said.

With this discovery, DPO Mohiuddin issued immediate orders to take Afzal’s wife into custody. SHO Akram arrested the woman, who revealed during interrogation that she had orchestrated the murder of her husband with the help of friends and her brother.

“Through the woman’s testimony, police arrested the other two suspects involved in the incident and seized the murder weapon in the Phalia police circle area,” SHO Akram added. “All three suspects are now in police custody and have confessed to committing the crime.”

www.dawn.com

Woman held for murdering husband in Mandi Bahauddin: police

Victim allegedly pressured his wife to make explicit videos on TikTok for money.
www.dawn.com
 
US appeals court upholds TikTok law forcing its sale

A U.S. federal appeals court on Friday upheld a law requiring Chinese-based ByteDance to divest its popular short video app TikTok in the United States by early next year or face a ban.

The decision is a win for the Justice Department and opponents of the Chinese-owned app and a devastating blow to ByteDance. It increases the possibility of an unprecedented ban in just six weeks on a social media app used by 170 million Americans.

The ruling is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court.

The appeals court noted the law was the result of Republicans and Democrats working together, as well as two presidents, as "part of a broader effort to counter a well-substantiated national security threat posed by the PRC (People's Republic of China)."

But free speech advocates immediately criticized the decision. The American Civil Liberties Union said it sets a "flawed and dangerous precedent."


 
US court rejects TikTok request to temporarily halt pending US ban

TikTok must now move quickly with a request to the Supreme Court to block or overturn a law that would require its Chinese parent ByteDance to divest of the short-video app by Jan. 19 after an appeals court on Friday rejected a bid for more time.

TikTok and ByteDance on Monday had filed the emergency motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, asking for more time to make their case to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The companies had warned that without court action, the law will "shut down TikTok — one of the nation's most popular speech platforms — for its more than 170 million domestic monthly users."

But the court rejected the bid, saying TikTok and ByteDance had not identified a previous case "in which a court, after rejecting a constitutional challenge to an Act of Congress, has enjoined the Act from going into effect while review is sought in the Supreme Court," Friday's unanimous court order said.

A TikTok spokesperson said after the ruling that the company plans to take its case to the Supreme Court, "which has an established historical record of protecting Americans' right to free speech."

Under the law, TikTok will be banned unless ByteDance divests it by Jan. 19. The law also gives the U.S. government sweeping powers to ban other foreign-owned apps that could raise concerns about collection of Americans' data.

The U.S. Justice Department argues "continued Chinese control of the TikTok application poses a continuing threat to national security."

TikTok says the Justice Department has misstated the social media app's ties to China, arguing its content recommendation engine and user data are stored in the U.S. on cloud servers operated by Oracle (ORCL.N), opens new tab while content moderation decisions that affect U.S. users are made in the United States.

The decision - unless the Supreme Court reverses it - puts TikTok's fate first in the hands of Democratic President Joe Biden on whether to grant a 90-day extension of the Jan. 19 deadline to force a sale, and then of Republican President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20.

Trump, who unsuccessfully tried to ban TikTok during his first term in 2020, said before the November presidential election he would not allow the ban on TikTok.

Also on Friday, the chair and top Democrat on a U.S. House of Representatives committee on China told the CEOs of Google-parent Alphabet (GOOGL.O), opens new tab and Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab they must be ready to remove TikTok from their U.S. app stores on Jan. 19.

SOURCE: https://www.reuters.com/legal/us-co...t-temporarily-halt-pending-us-ban-2024-12-13/
 

TikTok asks US Supreme Court to avert law that could ban popular app​


TikTok asked the US Supreme Court on Monday to temporarily block a law that would force its Chinese owner to sell the popular online video-sharing platform or shut it down a month from now.

The appeal to the nation's top court came on the same day that TikTok Chief Executive Shou Zi Chew met with US President-elect Donald Trump, according to an NBC News report.

At a press conference Monday, Trump said he has "a warm spot" for TikTok and that his administration would take a look at the app and the potential for a ban.

The law, signed by President Joe Biden in April, would block TikTok from US app stores and web hosting services unless its owner ByteDance divests from the app by January 19.

TikTok asked for the move to be put on hold while it challenges a lower court ruling that upheld the law, the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, potentially with an appeal to the Supreme Court itself.

TikTok asked the nation's top court to make a decision by January 6.

"Congress has enacted a massive and unprecedented speech restriction," TikTok, which claims to have more than 170 million monthly US users, said in its filing with the Supreme Court.

Should the law come into force it would "shutter one of America's most popular speech platforms the day before a presidential inauguration," TikTok said.

"This, in turn, will silence the speech of Applicants and the many Americans who use the platform to communicate about politics, commerce, arts, and other matters of public concern," it added.

"Applicants -- as well as countless small businesses who rely on the platform -- also will suffer substantial and unrecoverable monetary and competitive harms."

The potential ban could strain US-China relations just as Donald Trump prepares to take office on January 20.

Trump has emerged as an unlikely TikTok ally amid concerns that a ban on the app would mainly benefit Meta, the Facebook parent company owned by Mark Zuckerberg.

Trump's stance reflects conservative criticism of Meta for allegedly suppressing right-wing content, including the former president himself being banned from Facebook after the January 6, 2021, US Capitol riot by his supporters.

Trump's support for TikTok marks a reversal from his first term, when the Republican leader tried to ban the app over similar security concerns.

The US government alleges TikTok allows Beijing to collect data and spy on users. It also says the video hosting service is a conduit to spread propaganda, though China and ByteDance strongly deny these claims.

A three-judge US appeals court panel earlier this month unanimously upheld the law's premise that TikTok divesting from Chinese ownership "is essential to protect our national security."

www.france24.com

TikTok asks US Supreme Court to temporarily block law that could ban popular app

TikTok petitioned the US Supreme Court on Monday to halt a law mandating its Chinese parent, ByteDance, to divest or close the app by January 19. This appeal coincided with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew's…
www.france24.com www.france24.com
 

Supreme Court agrees to hear challenge to TikTok ban​


The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it will take up a challenge to a new law that could lead to a ban on TikTok in the U.S, setting up a showdown over access to a widely popular app used by tens of millions of Americans.

Arguments will be heard by the high court on Jan. 10, an expedited timeline that allows for the court to consider the issue before the law takes effect on Jan. 19.

The Supreme Court said in a brief order that the Justice Department and lawyers for TikTok, as well as a group of users who separately challenged the law, should be prepared to argue whether the ban passed by Congress violates the First Amendment.

TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, asked the high court earlier this week to temporarily block enforcement of the law while it appealed a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The Supreme Court said in its order that consideration of that request for emergency relief is deferred pending oral argument.

"Congress's unprecedented attempt to single out applicants and bar them from operating one of the most significant speech platforms in this Nation presents grave constitutional problems that this Court likely will not allow to stand," lawyers for TikTok wrote in their request to the Supreme Court.

TikTok suffered a blow on Dec. 6 when a panel of three judges from the D.C. Circuit denied its bid to overturn the law. A week later, the appeals court denied TikTok's request to delay the law from taking effect pending a Supreme Court review.

The law, which Congress passed in April as part of a foreign assistance package, gave TikTok nine months to sever ties with ByteDance, its Chinese parent company, or lose access to app stores and web-hosting services in the U.S. President Biden quickly signed the bill into law, and it is set to take effect on Jan. 19, with the possibility of a one-time 90-day delay granted by the president if a sale is in progress.

President-elect Donald Trump tried to ban TikTok during his first term in office, but reversed his position during the presidential campaign and vowed to "save" the app. He told reporters during a press conference Monday that the platform played a role in helping him win the youth vote in the November election and said he would "take a look at TikTok."

"I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok," he said. The same day, Trump met with TikTok's CEO Shou Chew at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

With arguments before the Supreme Court set for Jan. 10, it will be the Biden administration that will present the government's case. TikTok is represented before the high court by Noel Francisco, who served as solicitor general during Trump's first term.

Still, TikTok is hoping either the Supreme Court or Trump will save it.

In its Dec. 6 ruling, the appeals court determined that the U.S. government's concerns about the Chinese government's collection of Americans' data and the ability for it to covertly manipulate content on the platform constitute a "compelling national security interest." The court called the government's concerns "well founded," pushing back on TikTok's arguments that the risks were speculative.

The appeals court said that it recognized its decision will have "significant implications" for TikTok and its users.

"Consequently, TikTok's millions of users will need to find alternative media of communication," Senior Judge Douglas Ginsburg wrote for the court. "That burden is attributable to the [People's Republic of China's] hybrid commercial threat to U.S. national security, not to the U.S. Government, which engaged with TikTok through a multi-year process in an effort to find an alternative solution."

When it challenged the law in May, TikTok asserted that it never had a choice between divestment or a ban because a forced sale "is simply not possible: not commercially, not technologically, not legally." The Chinese government vowed to block the sale of TikTok's algorithm which tailors content recommendations to each user. A new buyer would be forced to rebuild the algorithm that powers the app. The petition said "such a fundamental rearchitecting is not remotely feasible" under the restrictions within the legislation.

"The platform consists of millions of lines of software code that have been painstakingly developed by thousands of engineers over multiple years," the petition said.

www.cbsnews.com

Supreme Court agrees to hear challenge to TikTok ban

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it will take up a challenge to a new law that could lead to a ban on TikTok in the U.S.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com
 

Albania bans TikTok for a year after fatal stabbing of teenager last month​


Albania has announced a one-year ban on TikTok following the killing of a teenager last month that raised fears over the influence of social media on children.

Edi Rama, the prime minister, confirmed the ban, part of a broader plan to make schools safer, after meeting with parents’ groups and teachers from across the country.

“For one year, we’ll be completely shutting it down for everyone. There will be no TikTok in Albania,” Rama said.

TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal business hours.

Several European countries including France, Germany and Belgium have enforced restrictions on social media use for children. In one of the world’s toughest regulations targeting big tech, Australia approved in November a complete social media ban for children under 16.

Rama has blamed social media, and TikTok in particular, for fuelling violence among youths in and outside school. His government’s decision comes after a 14-year-old schoolboy was stabbed to death in November by a fellow pupil.

Local media had reported that the incident came after arguments between the two boys on social media. Videos had also emerged on TikTok of young people supporting the killing.

“The problem today is not our children, the problem today is us, the problem today is our society, the problem today is TikTok and all the others that are taking our children hostage,” Rama said.

The ban is expected to come into effect early next year.

www.theguardian.com

Albania bans TikTok for a year after fatal stabbing of teenager last month

Prime minister announces move after meeting with parents’ groups and teachers over social media fears
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com
 
I think to ban something is never a solution. TikTok is highly effective in marketing. I am handling a lot of client where there sales get 2-3 times just because of effective TikTok marketing. So I am in favor of TikTok.
 
BouncerGuy said:
Am I the only one who never ever downloaded this useless app and watched video on it???
Click to expand...
I am also not on TikTok and have never used it.

Because of this I am sure I have been slow on the uptake. But when I was in Pakistan last summer it really struck me how much time young people now devote to watching short videos on their mobiles (I don’t know if these were videos from TikTok, Youtube or Instagram). Of course, I am sure this happens in most places and is not restricted to Pakistan, but it just happened to really hit me in the summer. In the 80s and 90s whereas a family would have sat together to watch a PTV drama, they are now individually watching their own thing on their own devices.

John-Burn Murdoch in fact wrote an article in the FT last week on the rise of the short form videos. First there was a shift away from newspapers to text-based social media - around 15 years ago. Now there to be a shift from text-based social media to short form videos.

For Murdoch these shifts have been a boon for populism. Certainly social media often feeds hatred and simplism. It also leads to 'siloization', with many people only listening and reading things they agree with.

At the same time, social media does make it harder for a 'totalitarian' to control all ideas and thoughts.
 
TikToker dies as pistol goes off while shooting video

A young TikToker died when his pistol went off while filming a video in Swat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, ARY News reported on Friday.

The incidence of deaths due to the adoption of new ways of making videos for social media through TikTok could not be reduced, the passion for uniquely making videos took another life.

The deceased was identified as Abu Bakar, 26, a resident of Saidu Sharif, Shaheen Abad area of Swat.

According to the reports, Abu Bakar accidentally shot himself while shooting a video for the popular social media video-sharing platform TikTok.

The police reached the spot, as soon as the incident was reported, shifting the body of the young man to Central Hospital Saidu Sharif.

The police have launched an investigation into the incident, collecting evidence and registering an FIR.

Notably, this is not an isolated case as in a similar incident in 2021, a teenage boy had died while filming a video for TikTok.

The tragic incident also took place in Swat where a teenage boy was died while making a video for TikTok.


arynews.tv

TikToker dies as pistol goes off while shooting video

SWAT: A young TikToker died when his pistol went off while filming a video in Swat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, ARY News reported on Friday. The
arynews.tv arynews.tv
 
Trump urges US Supreme Court to delay TikTok ban

US President-elect Donald Trump has asked the US Supreme Court to delay an upcoming TikTok ban while he works on a "political resolution".

His lawyer filed a legal brief on Friday with the court that says Trump "opposes banning TikTok" and "seeks the ability to resolve the issues at hand through political means once he takes office".

On 10 January, the court is due to hear arguments on a US law that requires TikTok's Chinese owner, ByteDance, to sell the social media company to an American firm or face a ban come 19 January - a day before Trump takes office.

US officials and lawmakers had accused ByteDance of being linked to the Chinese government - which the firm denies.

Those allegations of an app that has 170 million users in the US led Congress to pass a bill in April, which President Joe Biden signed into law, that included the divest or ban requirement.

TikTok and ByteDance have filed multiple legal challenges against the law, arguing that it threatens American free speech protections, with little success. With no potential buyer materialising so far, the companies' final chance to derail the ban has been via the American high court.

While the Supreme Court has previously declined to act on a request for an emergency injunction against the law, it agreed to allow TikTok, ByteDance and the US government to plead their cases on 10 January - just days before the ban is due to take effect.

Trump had met with TikTok's CEO, Shou Zi Chew, at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida last week.

In his court filing on Friday, Trump said the case represents "an unprecedented, novel, and difficult tension between free-speech rights on one side, and foreign policy and national security concerns on the other".

While the filing said that Trump "takes no position on the underlying merits of this dispute", it added that pushing back the 19 January deadline would grant Trump "the opportunity to pursue a political resolution" to the matter without having to resort to the court.

The US justice department has argued that alleged Chinese links to TikTok present a national security threat - and multiple state governments have raised concerns about the popular social media app.

Nearly two dozen state attorneys general led by Montana's Austin Knudsen have urged the Supreme Court to uphold the law compelling ByteDance and TikTok to divest or be banned.

Earlier in December, a federal appeals court rejected an attempt to overturn the legislation, saying it was "the culmination of extensive, bipartisan action by the Congress and successive presidents."

Trump has publicly said he opposes the ban, despite supporting one in his first term as president.

"I have a warm spot in my heart for TikTok, because I won youth by 34 points," he claimed at a press conference earlier in December, although a majority of young voters backed his opponent, Kamala Harris.

"There are those that say that TikTok has something to do with that," he added.

BBC
 
TikTok to make final plea at Supreme Court against US ban

TikTok will appear before the US Supreme Court on Friday in a last-ditch effort to overturn a ban, in a case testing the limits of national security and free speech.

The popular social media platform is challenging a law passed last year ordering the firm to be split from its Chinese owner or be blocked from the US by 19 January.

The US government is arguing that without a sale, TikTok could be used by China as a tool for spying and political manipulation.

But TikTok rejects that claim, arguing it has been unfairly targeted and the measure violates the free speech of its some 170 million American users.

Lower courts have sided with the government, but the case was complicated last month when President-elect Donald Trump weighed in on the dispute and asked for the enforcement of the law to be paused to grant him time to work out a deal.

Analysts have said it was not clear what the Supreme Court will decide, but that reversing the prior ruling - even with a future president's blessing - would be unusual.

"When you have a real government interest pitted against a real constitutional value, it ends up being a very close case," said Cardozo School of Law professor Saurabh Vishnubhakat.

"But in such close cases, the government often gets the benefit of the doubt."

A decision by Supreme Court could be made within days.

Congress passed the law against TikTok last year with support from both the Democratic and Republican parties. The moment marked the culmination of years of concern about the wildly popular platform, which is known for its viral videos and traction among young people.

The legislation does not forbid use of the app, but would require tech giants such as Apple and Google to stop offering it and inhibit updates, which analysts suggest would kill it over time.

TikTok is already banned from government devices in many countries, including in the UK. It faces more complete bans in some countries, including India.

The US argues that TikTok is a "grave" threat because the Chinese government could coerce its owner, ByteDance, to turn over user data or manipulate what it shows users to serve Chinese interests.

Last December, a three-judge appeals court decision upheld the law, noting China's record of acting through private companies and saying the measure was justified as "part of a broader effort to counter a well-substantiated national security threat posed" by the country.

TikTok has repeatedly denied any potential influence by the Chinese Communist Party and has said the law violates the First Amendment free speech rights of its users.

It has asked the Supreme Court to strike down the law as unconstitutional, or order its enforcement to be halted to enable a review of the legislation, which it said was based on "inaccurate, flawed and hypothetical information".

Trump is set to take office the day after the law would come into force.

He had called for banning the app in the US during his first term, but changed his tune on the campaign trail.

The brief that Trump's lawyers filed late last month did not take a position on legal dispute, but said the case presented "unprecedented, novel, and difficult tension between free-speech rights on one side, and foreign policy and national-security concerns on the other".

Noting his election win, it said Trump "opposes banning TikTok" and "seeks the ability to resolve the issues at hand through political means once he takes office".

BBC
 
US top court leans towards TikTok ban over security concerns

The Supreme Court appears poised to uphold a law that bans TikTok in the US over national security concerns unless its China-based parent company sells the platform ahead of a 19 January deadline.

The Court's nine justices heard from lawyers representing TikTok, and content creators that the ban would be a violation of free speech protections for the platform's more than 170 million users in the US.

The US government argued that without a sale, TikTok could be used by China as a tool for spying and political manipulation.

A decision by the top court has to be made within days. President-elect Donald Trump - who returns to the White House in just over a week - now argues against the ban.


www.bbc.com

US Supreme Court leans towards TikTok ban over security concerns

The platform with nearly 170 million American users is challenging a law that would see it banned in the US in a matter of days.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
 
TikTok says report of possible sale to Musk 'pure fiction'

TikTok has called a report that China is considering allowing a sale of the social media company's US operations to Elon Musk "pure fiction."

The firm's comments came in response to a report by Bloomberg that Chinese officials are weighing an option that could see its business in America being sold to the world's richest person if the US Supreme Court upholds a ban on the app.

Supreme Court justices are due to rule on a law that set a 19 January deadline for TikTok to either sell its US operations or face a ban in the country.

TikTok has repeatedly said that it will not sell its US operation.

"We can't be expected to comment on pure fiction," a TikTok spokesperson told BBC News.

Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that one possible scenario being considered by Chinese officials would see Musk's X social media platform take control of TikTok's US operations.

X did not immediately reply to a BBC request for comment.

Musk is a close ally of US president-elect Donald Trump, who is set to return to the White House on 20 January.

Last month, Trump urged the Supreme Court to delay its decision until he takes office to enable him to seek a "political resolution".

His lawyer filed a legal brief with the court that says Trump "opposes banning TikTok" and "seeks the ability to resolve the issues at hand through political means once he takes office".

That came a week after Trump met TikTok's chief executive, Shou Zi Chew, at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

On Monday, two Democratic lawmakers, Senator Edward Markey and Representative Ro Khanna, also called on Congress and the President Joe Biden to extend the 19 January deadline.

During a Supreme Court hearing last week, justices appeared inclined to uphold the legislation and stick to the deadline.

During nearly three hours of arguments, the nine justices returned time and again to the national security concerns that gave rise to the law.

The Biden administration has argued that without a sale, TikTok could be used by China as a tool for spying and political manipulation.

The company has repeatedly denied any influence by the Chinese Communist Party and has said the law to ban it in the US violates the First Amendment free speech rights of its users.

BBC
 

Trump will save TikTok from ban, top adviser says​


US President-elect Donald Trump will find a way to save TikTok before a ban on the app is due to take effect this weekend, his incoming national security adviser has said.

Congressman Mike Waltz, a Florida Republican, said Trump would intervene if the Supreme Court upholds a law that bans the platform in the US unless it is sold by 19 January.

In its last last week, the Biden administration is also looking for ways to prevent TikTok suddenly disappearing, reports NBC News.

Chinese owner ByteDance has said it plans to shut off the app for its 170 million US users by Sunday.

"We will put measures in place to keep TikTok from going dark," said Waltz on Thursday.

He noted that the law allows a 90-day extension for ByteDance if significant progress has been made towards a sale.

"Essentially that buys President Trump time to keep TikTok going," said Waltz.

A day earlier the incoming national security adviser told Fox News: "I don't want to get ahead of our executive orders. But we're going to create the space to put that deal in place."

The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that Trump is considering an executive order that would seek to suspend the ban for 60 to 90 days, citing two anonymous sources. However, it is unclear whether such a measure could circumvent a law passed by Congress.

The app has been banned on national security grounds, because of concerns that its data could be collected by the Chinese Communist Party.

According to the New York Times, Trump has invited the chief executive of TikTok, Shou Zi Chew, to attend his presidential inauguration next Monday, sitting in a position of honour on the dais.

Trump has previously asked the Supreme Court to delay the ban - which would go into effect one day before he is sworn into office - so he can seek a "political" solution.

Congress passed a bipartisan law last year that gave TikTok's owner, ByteDance, nine months to find a US-approved buyer or face a ban of the platform in the United States.

The legislation does not forbid use of the app, but would require tech giants such as Apple and Google to stop offering it and inhibit updates, which analysts suggest would kill it over time.

President Joe Biden signed the bill into law last April as part of a package that provided aid to Ukraine and Israel.

But NBC News reports that Biden has been considering ways to keep the app available if a ban goes into effect.

Under that plan, they would defer the issue to Trump, who is inaugurated on Monday, according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke to NBC.

TikTok and ByteDance deny being linked to the Chinese government. They have also ruled out a sale.

The Supreme Court heard TikTok and Bytedance's arguments against the law last week.

A decision is expected any day.

Both Biden and Trump have reversed their stances on the platform.

Trump attempted to ban the app during his first term in office, but said on the campaign trail this year that he would protect the platform.

www.bbc.com

TikTok ban: Trump will stop the platform going dark, says top adviser

Incoming National Security Adviser Mike Waltz says the law allows a 90-day grace period for the app's Chinese owner.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com
 
TikTok says it will 'go dark' on Sunday without US government action

TikTok has said it will be forced to "go dark" in the US on Sunday unless the government intervenes before a ban takes effect.

In a statement late on Friday, it said the White House and the Department of Justice had "failed to provide the necessary clarity and assurance to the service providers that are integral to maintaining TikTok's availability".

It said that unless the government immediately stepped in to assure the video app it would not be punished for violating the looming ban, it would be "forced to go dark on January 19".

The statement follows a Supreme Court ruling earlier on Friday which upheld a law banning the app in the US unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sells the platform by Sunday.

Passed in April last year, the law says ByteDance must sell the US version of the platform to a neutral party to avert an outright ban.

TikTok challenged the law, arguing it violates free speech protections for its 170 million users in the country.

But the Supreme Court's ruling means the US version of the app will be removed from app stores and web hosting services unless a buyer is found in the coming days.

It had been thought the ban would not impact TikTok users who already have the app downloaded on their phones.

But given updates would become unavailable once the ban comes into force, the app would eventually degrade and become unusable over time.

TikTok's fresh statement on Friday, however, suggests it may immediately become unavailable to all existing users as well as those seeking to download it.

Influencers and content creators have been posting videos on the app bidding farewell to their followers ahead of the impending ban.

One creator, Nicole Bloomgarden, told the BBC not being on TikTok would amount to a significant salary cut, while another, Erika Thompson, said the educational content on the platform would be the "biggest loss" for the community.

Some users have been announcing where their content will be available to view next, including on the Chinese video app, Red Note, which has been little used by American users up until now.

President Joe Biden's term is due to end on Monday, with Donald Trump due to be sworn in as the next president on that day. The White House earlier said it would therefore fall on the incoming president to enforce the law.

Trump has indicated he is against the ban, after initially supporting the move. "My decision on TikTok will be made in the not too distant future, but I must have time to review the situation," he said on Friday.

He also revealed he had spoken to China's President Xi Jinping and discussed TikTok, among other issues.

In December Trump said he had a "warm spot" for the app as it helped him with young voters in the 2024 election.

Trump's comments marked a U-turn on his stance in his first term as president when he aimed to enact a similar ban through an executive order.

ByteDance has vowed not to sell TikTok and said it planned to shut US operations of the app on Sunday unless there is a reprieve.

Democratic and Republican lawmakers voted to ban the video-sharing app last year, over concerns about its links to the Chinese government. TikTok has repeatedly stated it does not share information with Beijing.

The potential ban comes at a time of heightened concern in the US about Chinese espionage.

Cybersecurity firms have suggested that the app is capable of collecting users' data beyond what they look at on TikTok.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland said authoritarian regimes should not have "unfettered access" to Americans' data and that the decision prevented China from "weaponising TikTok to undermine America's national security".

China enacted a law in 2017 that compels Chinese nationals living abroad to co-operate with its intelligence apparatus.

But Beijing has denied it pressures companies to collect information on its behalf and criticised the ban. TikTok has repeatedly stressed it has not been asked for its data.

The app argued the law endangers free speech and would hit its users, advertisers, content creators and employees. TikTok has 7,000 US employees.

How did we get here?

24 April 2024: Biden signs bipartisan TikTok bill, which gave Chinese parent company, ByteDance, six months to sell its controlling stake or be blocked in the US.

7 May 2024: TikTok files a lawsuit aiming to block the law, calling it an "extraordinary intrusion on free speech rights".

2 August 2024: The US government files a lawsuit against TikTok, accusing the social media company of unlawfully collecting children's data and failing to respond when parents tried to delete their children's accounts.

6 December 2024: TikTok's bid to overturn a law which would see it banned or sold in the US from early 2025 is rejected by a federal appeals court.

27 December 2024: President-elect Donald Trump asks the US Supreme Court to delay the upcoming ban while he works on a "political resolution".

10 January 2025: The Supreme Court's nine justices hear from lawyers representing TikTok and content creators that the ban would be a violation of free speech protections for the platform's more than 170 million users in the US.

17 January 2025: The US Supreme Court upholds the law that could lead to TikTok being banned within days over national security concerns.

19 January 2025: The deadline for TikTok to sell its US stake or face a ban. TikTok has indicated it will "go dark" on this day.

BBC
 
TikTok goes offline in the US hours before ban due to come in

TikTok has gone offline in the US, hours before a new law banning the platform was due to come into effect.

A message appearing on the app for US users said a law banning TikTok had been enacted, meaning "you can't use TikTok for now".

"We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office," it read.

It comes after the social media platform warned it would "go dark" on Sunday unless the outgoing Biden administration gave assurances the ban will not be enforced.

President-elect Donald Trump has said he would "most likely" give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from a ban once he takes office on Monday.

Users reported the app had also been removed from both Apple and Google's US app stores and TikTok.com was not showing videos.

"The 90-day extension is something that will be most likely done, because it's appropriate," Trump told NBC News on Saturday.

"If I decide to do that, I'll probably announce it on Monday."

The White House said that it was up to the incoming administration to take action.

"We see no reason for TikTok or other companies to take actions in the next few days before the Trump administration takes office on Monday," press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the law, passed in April last year, banning the app in the US unless its China-based parent company, ByteDance, sold the platform by Sunday, which it has not done.

TikTok has argued that the law violates free speech protections for its 170 million users in the country.

After the ruling, TikTok's chief executive, Shou Zi Chew, appealed to Trump, thanking him for his "commitment to work with us to find a solution."

Mr Chew is expected to attend Trump's inauguration on Monday.

In the hours leading up to the social media platform going offline, content creators had been posting videos to say goodbye to their followers.

Creator Nicole Bloomgarden told the BBC that not being on TikTok would result in a significant salary cut.

Another user, Erika Thompson, said educational content on the platform would be the "biggest loss" for the community.

TikTok users were met with a message earlier on Saturday that said the law would "force us to make our services temporarily unavailable. We're working to restore our service in the U.S. as soon as possible."

BBC
 

'Sad' Gauff will turn to books after TikTok ban​


The American, 20, wrote "RIP TikTok USA" and drew a broken heart on a camera lens shortly after her win over Belinda Bencic in the Australian Open fourth round.

The social media platform has gone offline for American users, hours before a new law banning the platform was due to come into effect.

It has been banned in the US over concerns about its links to the Chinese government.

Speaking after her 5-7 6-2 6-1 win over Switzerland's Bencic in Melbourne, third seed Gauff said: "Hopefully it comes back. It's really sad. I love TikTok."

"It's like an escape. I honestly do that before matches.

"I guess it'll force me to read books more, be more of a productive human probably. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise."

Gauff, who will face Spanish 11th seed Paula Badosa in the quarter-finals, has more than 750,000 followers on TikTok.

Because she was in Melbourne, she wondered if the ban would still apply.

"I honestly thought I'd be able to get away with it," added Gauff.

"I guess it's something to do with my number. I don't know. I have to do some research."

US President-elect Donald Trump had said he would "most likely" give TikTok a 90-day reprieve from the ban after taking office on Monday.

Defending champion and top seed Aryna Sabalenka, who has more than 500,000 followers on the platform, is also hoping the ban is lifted.

The Belarusian, who beat Russia's Mirra Andreeva to reach the last eight, recreated one of her viral dance videos with fans on Rod Laver Arena after her first-round victory a week ago.

"This isn't something we can control and I hope they're going to figure it out because I love TikTok," she said.

Sabalenka is set to face another Russian in Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the quarter-finals after the 27th seed beat Croatia's 18th seed Donna Vekic.

www.bbc.com

TikTok ban: Coco Gauff 'sad' about ban but vows to 'read more books' after Australian Open win

Coco Gauff says she is "sad" TikTok is no longer usable in the United States but it will help her "read more books instead" after reaching the Australian Open quarter-finals.
www.bbc.com
 

TikTok starts restoring service after Donald Trump confirms he will sign order pausing US ban​

TikTok has begun restoring service to the app in the US after Donald Trump said he would sign an executive order pausing its ban.

A law signed by President Joe Biden last April required ByteDance, TikTok's China-based parent company, to sell the app to a non-Chinese owner by Sunday or face a ban.

Some users reported that they lost access on Saturday night, and Americans opening the app on Sunday have been greeted with a message saying they "can't use" TikTok "for now".

But in a post on Truth Social ahead of his inauguration, Mr Trump said he would issue an executive order handing the app an extension to find a new owner.

"I'm asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark," the president-elect wrote, adding the order will allow time "so that we can make a deal to protect our national security".

He then confirmed that "there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order" and said: "Americans deserve to see our exciting Inauguration on Monday, as well as other events and conversations."

TikTok later said it had started restoring service on Sunday, thanking the president for clarifying to service providers "that they will face no penalties providing TikTok".

It added: "It's a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States."

news.sky.com

TikTok starts restoring service after Donald Trump confirms he will sign order pausing US ban

American users opening TikTok on Sunday were greeted by a message saying they "can't use" the Chinese-owned app "for now" after a law banning it came into effect.
news.sky.com news.sky.com
 

TikTok starts restoring service after Donald Trump confirms he will sign order pausing US ban​


TikTok has begun restoring service to the app in the US after Donald Trump said he would sign an executive order pausing its ban.

A law signed by President Joe Biden last April required ByteDance, TikTok's China-based parent company, to sell the app to a non-Chinese owner by Sunday or face a ban.

Some users reported that they lost access on Saturday night, and Americans opening the app on Sunday have been greeted with a message saying they "can't use" TikTok "for now".

But in a post on Truth Social ahead of his inauguration, Mr Trump said he would issue an executive order handing the app an extension to find a new owner.

"I'm asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark," the president-elect wrote, adding the order will allow time "so that we can make a deal to protect our national security".

He then confirmed that "there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order" and said: "Americans deserve to see our exciting Inauguration on Monday, as well as other events and conversations."

TikTok later said it had started restoring service on Sunday, thanking the president for clarifying to service providers "that they will face no penalties providing TikTok".

It added: "It's a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States."
Ahead of the ban coming into effect, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called TikTok's plans to shut down the app a "stunt" and said actions enforcing the ban would "fall to the next administration".

Mr Trump also indicated on Truth Social what a possible deal could look like, saying he would prefer the US "to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture" with ByteDance or a new owner.

"Without US approval, there is no TikTok," he said. "With our approval, it is worth hundreds of billions of dollars - maybe trillions."

On Saturday, the president-elect told NBC News' Meet The Press moderator Kristen Welker that TikTok would "most likely" be given a 90-day pause from the ban to find a new owner.

Under the bipartisan law on TikTok - signed by Mr Biden - the president can grant a one-time extension of 90 days under three conditions:

• There is a path to divestiture of the app

• There is "significant progress" toward executing a sale

• There are in place "the relevant binding legal agreements to enable execution of such qualified divestiture during the period of such extension"

No legal agreements on the sale of TikTok to a non-Chinese owner have been made public, and Mr Trump did not say on Saturday if he was aware of any recent progress toward a sale.

CNBC later reported Perplexity AI made a bid for the app's parent company on Saturday to allow it to merge with TikTok US and create a new entity, which would also include New Capital Partners.

news.sky.com

TikTok starts restoring service after Donald Trump confirms he will sign order pausing US ban

American users opening TikTok on Sunday were greeted by a message saying they "can't use" the Chinese-owned app "for now" after a law banning it came into effect.
news.sky.com news.sky.com
 

Man injured in lion attack while filming TikTok video​


A young man was severely injured after attempting to make a TikTok video with a caged lion at a breeding farm in Lahore.

The incident occurred at the breeding facility of Mian Umar Dola in the Sabzazar area, where Azim, approached the caged lion to film a video, Express News reported.

However, the lion suddenly attacked him, causing injuries to his face, shoulder, and arm. The injured man was taken to Jinnah Hospital, where he received medical treatment.

Following the attack, the Director-General of Punjab Wildlife issued an order to revoke the breeding farm’s licence and instructed legal action against the individual responsible.

A spokesperson for the Punjab Wildlife Department stated that the DG had directed the cancellation of the breeding farm’s licence, urging strict action against the owner.

Few days ago, the Punjab cabinet approved amendments to the Department of Forests and Wildlife regulations, marking a crucial step in the conservation of big cats and the protection of forest resources.

Under the new amendments, lions, cheetahs, tigers, pumas and jaguars have been added to Schedule II of the Wildlife Act 1974, making it illegal to keep these animals as pets.

From now on, a licence will be required to maintain these big cats in breeding farms, with the Punjab Wildlife Department overseeing the licencing process.

The fee for keeping one big cat will be set at Rs50,000.

Additionally, specific requirements regarding cage sizes and open areas for these animals have been established.

To prevent exploitation, the promotion of big cats on platforms like TikTok and other social media will be banned, with violators facing legal repercussions.

Senior Minister Maryam Aurangzeb emphasized that big cats will not be permitted in urban areas under any circumstances, although they can be kept outside city limits.

Owners will be granted a period to relocate their animals, after which legal action will be taken against those who fail to comply.

The cabinet also introduced amendments to the Punjab Forest Transit Rules 2024, which will establish checkpoints at strategic locations to combat illegal logging.

The transportation of forest produce between sunset and sunrise will be deemed illegal, and forest officers will have the authority to close depots and impose fines for any violations.

tribune.com.pk

Man injured in lion attack while filming TikTok video in Lahore | The Express Tribune

The incident led to severe injuries to the man and sparked action from Punjab Wildlife officials.
tribune.com.pk tribune.com.pk
 
Executive order delaying TikTok ban gets Trump sign-off

President Trump has signed an executive order granting TikTok a 75-day extension to comply with a law that requires a sale or ban of the platform.

He says during that time, the US will not enforce the law passed by Congress last year and signed by former President Joe Biden.

The order was among a slew of directives Trump signed on Monday evening.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, he said: "I tell you what. Every rich person has called me about TikTok."

When asked by a reporter why he's had a change of heart since trying to ban TikTok in 2020, Trump responded: "Because I got to use it."

He also floated the possibility of a joint venture, saying he was seeking a 50-50 partnership between "the United States" and its Chinese owner ByteDance. But he did not give any further details on how that might work.

On Saturday evening, the Chinese-owned app stopped working for American users, after a law banning it on national security grounds came into effect.

It resumed services to its 170 million users in the US after Trump said he would issue an executive order to give the app a reprieve when he took office.

The Biden administration had argued that TikTok could be used by China as a tool for spying and political manipulation.

Opponents of a ban have cited freedom of speech as a reason for keeping the platform open.

TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, previously ignored a law requiring it to sell its US operations to avoid a ban.

The law was upheld by Supreme Court on Friday and went into effect on Sunday, but the Biden White House said it would leave implementing the law to the incoming administration given the timing.

Trump had backed a ban of the platform during his first term in office.

The newly signed executive order places him at odds with many members of Congress from his own party.

On Sunday in a post on X, Republican Senator Tom Cotton said any company that "hosts, distributes, services or otherwise facilitates communist-controlled TikTok" could face hundreds of billions of dollars in fines.

Cotton said liability could stem not just from the Department of Justice, "but also under securities law, shareholder lawsuits, and state AGs [attorneys general]. Think about it".

TikTok chief executive Shou Zi Chew attended Trump's inauguration on Monday along with other big technology bosses, including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos.

Earlier on Monday, YouTube star Mr Beast posted a TikTok video of him apparently from a private jet on his way to make an official offer to buy the short video platform.

The post gave no other details about the offer, only that it would be "crazy".

Other companies, billionaires and celebrities have expressed interest in buying TikTok, including X owner Musk and an investor from the TV show Shark Tank, Kevin O'Leary.

BBC
 
Microsoft in talks to buy TikTok, Trump says

US President Donald Trump has said Microsoft is in discussions to acquire TikTok and that he would like to see a "bidding war" over the sale of the social media app.

When asked by reporters whether the US tech giant was preparing a bid, Trump replied: "I would say yes" - before adding that there was "great interest in TikTok" from several companies.

Both Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden have been trying for years to force TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell its US operations on national security grounds.

It comes as Trump signed an executive order last week to delay a Biden Administration ban on TikTok that briefly took the app offline for its 170m users in the United States.

Despite granting TikTok a 75-day reprieve from the ban, Trump had been the first president to start pressuring ByteDance to sell its app.

In August 2020, ByteDance approached Microsoft as a possible buyer - something which the US company's chief executive later described as "the strangest thing".

Later, TikTok chose rival Oracle as a potential partner - although that deal also never happened.

Trump has previously said that he was in discussions with several parties about purchasing TikTok and expects to make a decision on the app's future within the next 30 days.

A spokesperson for Microsoft said the company had "nothing to share at this time". The BBC has also reached out to TikTok for comment.

Earlier on Monday, the US president had addressed a gathering of Republican politicians in Florida and spoke about the proposed sale of TikTok.

"We'll see what happens. We're going to have a lot of people bidding on it," he said.

"If we can save all that voice and all the jobs, and China won't be involved, we don't want China involved, but we'll see what happens," he added.

Previous names linked with buying TikTok include billionaire Frank McCourt and the Canadian businessman Kevin O'Leary - a celebrity investor on Shark Tank, the US version of Dragon's Den.

The biggest YouTuber in the world Jimmy Donaldson - AKA MrBeast - has also claimed he is in the running after a number of investors contacted him following an earlier tweet signalling his interest.

BBC
 
US citizen shot dead by father in Quetta over TikTok videos

A man who had recently brought his family back to Pakistan from the United States on Wednesday confessed to shooting dead his teenage daughter, motivated by his disapproval of her TikTok content, Pakistani police said.

The shooting happened on a street in Quetta on Tuesday. The suspect, Anwarul Haq, initially said that unidentified gunmen shot and killed his American-born, 15-year-old daughter before he confessed to the crime, police official Babar Baloch said.

"Our investigation so far has found that the family had an objection to her dressing, lifestyle, and social gathering," another police investigator, Zohaib Mohsin, said. "We have her phone. It is locked," he told Reuters. "We are probing all aspects, including honour killing."

The family had recently returned to Balochistan province in predominantly Muslim Pakistan, a nation with conservative social norms, having lived in the United States for about 25 years, Baloch said.

The suspect has U.S. citizenship, the officer said. He said Haq had told him his daughter began creating "objectionable" content on the social media platform TikTok when she lived in the United States.

He told police that she continued to share videos on the platform after returning to Pakistan. Baloch said the main suspect's brother-in-law had also been arrested in connection with the killing.

Police said they had charged Haq with the murder. They did not offer proof of Haq's U.S. citizenship except for the suspect's own testimony and declined to say whether the U.S. embassy had been informed of the incident.

His family declined to respond to a Reuters' request for comment.

More than 54 million people use TikTok in Pakistan, a nation of 241 million. The government has blocked the video-sharing app several times in recent years over content moderation.

Islamabad often takes issue with what it terms "obscene content" with the social media platform, which has lately started complying with requests from Pakistan to remove certain content.


Samaa TV
 
TikTok girl ‘killed’ by brothers in Jhelum

In a shocking incident, a 20-year-old female was allegedly shot dead by her brothers in Jhelum for making TikTok videos.

According to police sources, the incident took place in Jhelum’s Dhoke Korian, whee neighbours had objected to the victim’s video-making, which led to a confrontation within the family.

Enraged by the situation, the brothers allegedly opened fire, killing their sister on the spot.

Following the murder, the accused reportedly attempted to stage the incident as a suicide and tried to erase evidence from the crime scene.

However, forensic teams have collected crucial evidence, and the police are pursuing legal action against the perpetrators.

Earlier this week, an American-Pakistani dual national female TikToker was shot dead in an alleged honour killing in Quetta.

The incident occurred in the Balochi Street area where 15-year-old Hira was killed, police said.

During the Police investigation, it was revealed that Hira was murdered by her father and maternal uncle Tayyab Ali.

Hira’s father was enraged over his daughter’s lifestyle and social media presence, particularly her TikTok videos. Hira refused to obey her father who tried to refrain her from making Tiktok videos.

The police officials stated that Anwarul-Haq had shifted to America with his wife and children several years ago. He came to Pakistan with her daughter Hira on January 15 while his wife and two other daughters remained in the US.

arynews.tv

TikTok girl 'killed' by brothers in Jhelum

JHELUM: In a shocking incident, a 20-year-old female was allegedly shot dead by her brothers in Jhelum for making TikTok videos. According to police
arynews.tv arynews.tv
 
TikTok video leads to death of 8-year-old Faisalabad

A 13-year-old boy’s attempt to create a TikTok video resulted in the death of an 8-year-old child in Faisalabad’s Madina Town. Police reported that the 13-year-old, identified as Muneeb, was driving a car and filming himself when he struck 8-year-old Yousaf.

Yousaf, who was attending a wedding, succumbed to his injuries after treatment at Allied Hospital. Police swiftly arrested both Muneeb and the individual filming the TikTok video following the incident.

A case has been registered against four named individuals at Madina Town Police Station.

Yousaf’s father stated that he and other neighbors had repeatedly warned Muneeb’s parents about his driving, but their concerns were ignored.

The incident highlights the dangers of reckless behavior fueled by the pursuit of viral content on social media platforms.


english.aaj.tv

TikTok video leads to death of 8-year-old Faisalabad

A case has been registered against four named individuals
english.aaj.tv
 
TikTok returns to Apple and Google app stores in the US

TikTok is again available on the US app stores of Apple and Google, after President Donald Trump postponed enforcement of a ban of the Chinese-owned social media platform until 5 April.

The popular app, which is used by more than 170 million American users, went dark briefly last month in the US as the ban deadline approached.

Trump then signed an executive order granting TikTok a 75-day extension to comply with a law banning the app if it is not sold.

TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BBC News.

According to Bloomberg, which first reported TikTok's return to app stores in the US, the decision to resume its availability came after Apple and Google received assurances from the Trump administration that they would not be held liable for allowing downloads, and the ban wouldn't be enforced yet.

The ban, which passed with a bipartisan vote in Congress, was signed into law by former President Joe Biden. It ordered TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance to sell the US version of the platform to a neutral party to avert an outright ban.

The Biden administration had argued that TikTok could be used by China as a tool for spying and political manipulation.

China and TikTok have repeatedly denied those accusations. Beijing has also previously rejected calls for a sale of TikTok's US operations.

The law banning the app was supported by US lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and it was ultimately upheld by the Supreme Court.

Trump himself had supported banning the app during his first term in office but he appeared to have a change of heart last year during the presidential race.

He professed a "warm spot" for the app, touting the billions of views he says his videos attracted on the platform during last year's presidential campaign.

When the app started working again in the US last month, a popup message was sent to its millions of users that thanked Trump by name.

TikTok chief executive Shou Chew met with Trump in Mar-a-Lago after his electoral victory in November and later attended his inauguration ceremony.

Trump has said he wants to find a compromise with the Chinese company that complies with the spirit rather than the letter of law, even floating an idea of TikTok being jointly owned.

"What I'm thinking of saying to someone is buy it and give half to the US, half, and we'll give you a permit," he said recently during a news conference about artificial intelligence.

And he also said he would be open to selling the app to Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, as well as billionaire Elon Musk, who leads the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency.

Previous names linked with buying TikTok include billionaire Frank McCourt and Canadian businessman Kevin O'Leary - a celebrity investor on Shark Tank, the US version of Dragon's Den.

The biggest YouTuber in the world Jimmy Donaldson - AKA MrBeast - has also claimed he is in the running after a number of investors contacted him after he posted on social media that he was interested.

BBC
 
Cricket Warrior said:
TikTok video leads to death of 8-year-old Faisalabad

A 13-year-old boy’s attempt to create a TikTok video resulted in the death of an 8-year-old child in Faisalabad’s Madina Town. Police reported that the 13-year-old, identified as Muneeb, was driving a car and filming himself when he struck 8-year-old Yousaf.

Yousaf, who was attending a wedding, succumbed to his injuries after treatment at Allied Hospital. Police swiftly arrested both Muneeb and the individual filming the TikTok video following the incident.

A case has been registered against four named individuals at Madina Town Police Station.

Yousaf’s father stated that he and other neighbors had repeatedly warned Muneeb’s parents about his driving, but their concerns were ignored.

The incident highlights the dangers of reckless behavior fueled by the pursuit of viral content on social media platforms.


english.aaj.tv

TikTok video leads to death of 8-year-old Faisalabad

A case has been registered against four named individuals
english.aaj.tv
Click to expand...

Inna lillahi wa inna ilaihi rajiun.

Senseless tragedy.
 
TikTok obsession claims another life as 12-year-old boy dies from gunshot

The obsession with TikTok has claimed another life. In New Karachi’s Ayub Goth, a 12-year-old boy, Nawaz, tragically lost his life after a gun was fired while he was making a TikTok video.

According to initial reports, the young boy was filming content when a shot was fired, leading to his immediate death. His body was shifted to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

However, police have termed the circumstances surrounding Nawaz’s death as suspicious and have launched an investigation.

Officials stated that the incident allegedly took place inside a house while filming a TikTok video, but further scrutiny is underway to determine the exact details.


english.aaj.tv

TikTok obsession claims another life as 12-year-old boy dies from gunshot

Police deem the incident suspicious and launch an investigation
english.aaj.tv
 
I don't really get thr appeal of tiktok. I don't really use it.

When it started it was great, but since YouTube introduced YouTube shorts, I don't get why tiktok is still popular.

Both Tiktok and YT shorts do the exact same thing.

Tiktok may have a better algorithm in that it has better recommendations however YouTube just has a history of better content + long form videos and streaming.

I can understand why twitch is popular since it's streaming caters to streamers as they can personalise their bank accounts but How is tiktok still competing with YouTube?
 

Trump says he will probably extend TikTok deadline again​


U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would likely extend a deadline for China-based ByteDance to divest the U.S. assets of short video app TikTok.

The president said in May he would extend the June 19 deadline after the app helped him with young voters in the 2024 election. His comments to reporters on Air Force One on Tuesday reiterated that sentiment.

"Probably, yeah," Trump said when asked about extending the deadline. "Probably have to get China approval but I think we'll get it. I think President Xi will ultimately approve it."

Source: Reuters
 
US imposes new Mexican cartel sanctions, cites murder of TikTok influencer

The United States has imposed sanctions against five leaders of a Mexican drug cartel for killings, including the prime suspect in the murder of Mexican influencer Valeria Marquez, and drug trafficking, the US Department of the Treasury has said.

The sanctions levied on Wednesday target the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG), which the Trump administration says is responsible for a significant share of fentanyl and other illegal drugs entering the US.

The cartel is said to use murder, including the targeted killing of women, as a weapon of intimidation against its rivals.

“The vicious attack highlights the brutal prevalence of femicide, or the killing of women on account of their gender, in Mexico. Femicide often goes unpunished and affects a significant portion of Mexico’s women,” the Treasury Department said in a statement.

In February, the Trump administration designated CJNG as a “Foreign Terrorist Organization” and “Specially Designated Global Terrorist.”

The cartel is led by Nemesio Ruben “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, who was among the five leaders named on Wednesday. The US authorities have offered a $15m reward for information leading to his capture.

A cartel commander closely linked to him, Ricardo Ruiz Velasco, was also sanctioned.

Ruiz has been identified as the prime suspect in the murder of his purported romantic partner, TikTok influencer Marquez, the Treasury Department said.


www.aljazeera.com

US imposes new Mexican cartel sanctions, cites murder of TikTok influencer

The Trump administration says the cartel is responsible for a significant share of fentanyl entering the country.
www.aljazeera.com www.aljazeera.com
 
Trump claims to have found wealthy buyer for TikTok

President Donald Trump said Sunday a group of buyers had been found for TikTok, which faces a looming ban in the United States due to its China ties, adding he could name the purchasers in two weeks.

"We have a buyer for TikTok, by the way," Trump said in an interview on Fox's Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo.

"Very wealthy people. It's a group of wealthy people," the president said, without revealing more except to say he would make their identities known "in about two weeks."

The president also said he would likely need "China approval" for the sale, "and I think President Xi (Jinping) will probably do it."

TikTok is owned by China-based internet company ByteDance.

A federal law requiring TikTok's sale or ban on national security grounds was due to take effect the day before Trump's inauguration on January 20. But the Republican, whose 2024 election campaign relied heavily on social media and who has said he is fond of TikTok, put the ban on pause.

In mid-June Trump extended a deadline for the popular video-sharing app by another 90 days to find a non-Chinese buyer or be banned in the United States.

Tech experts quickly described the TikTok kerfuffle as a symbol of the heated US-China tech rivalry.

While Trump had long supported a ban or divestment, he reversed his position and vowed to defend the platform - which boasts almost two billion global users - after coming to believe it helped him win young voters' support in the November election.

"I have a little warm spot in my heart for TikTok," Trump told NBC News in early May. "If it needs an extension, I would be willing to give it an extension."

ByteDance has confirmed talks with the US government, saying key matters needed to be resolved and that any deal would be "subject to approval under Chinese law." afp


tribune.com.pk

Trump claims to have found wealthy buyer for TikTok | The Express Tribune

Trump claims to have found wealthy buyer for TikTok
tribune.com.pk tribune.com.pk
 
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