Is TikTok of any benefit to our society?

[BouncerGuy]

Two suspects held after TikToker found dead in her home

The Ghotki police on Friday detained two suspects after a TikToker, Samira Rajput, was found dead in her home and her daughter suspected that she might have been poisoned by the two men.

Samira, daughter of Sharif Rajput, had been living alone in her home, situated in the Bhotta Mohallah of Ghotki, since separation from her spouse, Ali Hassan Soomro, some time ago.

The detained suspects, Ali Rajput and Imran Rajput, had been frequenting Samira’s home during this period, according to her daughter, Saba.

Saba told the police and local reporters that both the suspects were interested in marrying her mother but she was not accepting proposal of any of them.

Saba told the police that she strongly believed either Ali or Imran might have poisoned her mother in frustration.

Meanwhile, the area police took Samira’s body into their custody and took it to the area’s taluka hospital for a post-mortem examination. They were interrogating the two suspects and also investigating the case from different angles.

On their part, the police believed that Samira had obtained divorce from Ali Hassan Soomro.

DAWN NEWS

 

[BouncerGuy]

Two TikTokers in Bahawalnagar arrested for ‘obscene’ acts, carrying drugs

A Division police arrested two TikTokers on Saturday and registered separate cases against them for allegedly performing obscene acts and possessing drugs.

Reports said a TikTok video containing ‘vulgar’ and ‘obscene’ acts was viral on various social media groups.

Upon investigation, it was found that Abu Bakar of Anarkali Bazaar, who was disguised as a woman by wearing a burqa in the clip, performed ‘obscene’ acts with trader Ikram inside the Anarkali Bazaar about eight to 10 days ago, in order to make the TikTok video viral.

Police said a case was registered against both under section 294 of the Pakistan Penal Code on Aug 15 on the complaint of ASI Shabbir Shah.

They said police on a tip-off arrested the duo when they were present along the bank of Fordwah canal on Aug 16.

Police said on search, 200 grams of hashish was recovered from Ikram’s pocket, which the police seized.

Another FIR was registered against both TikTokers under the Narcotics Act for possession of prohibited drugs.

DAWN NEWS

 

[mominsaigol]

Tiktok is a great app in general however eventually google will kill it in the same way Instagram after copying stories killed Snapchat.

By killing i mean people will obviously use said platforms and they will remain as multi billion dollar valuation however the trend towards Snapchat obviously has died down.

Simply put YouTube pays more, has a 20+ year old history of videos, and has everything including streaming whole tiktok is incorporating more features but it is limited to shorts with tiktok live being nowhere close to YT or twitch.

The reason tiktok is a shorts pioneer is due to their killer algorithm. I admit that on YouTube I follow my subscriptions but it shows me irrelevant stuff.

Meanwhile tiktok somehow knows what short will be of my interest and what I actually want to watch.

However YouTube will eventually nail it down. YouTube pretty much ended the twitch attraction with twitch now being more a niche platform and even its top streamers such as Ninja and Pokimane dying down and fading into irrelevance.

In a few years, Google will end tiktok due to its search engines eventually improving its algorithm

 

[Cricket Warrior]

Gilgit-Baltistan police bar officers from using TikTok

The Gilgit-Baltistan police have imposed a ban on the use of the social media platform TikTok by its personnel in a move aimed at maintaining discipline and the dignity of the force, the Information Department of Gilgit-Baltistan said on Monday.

A notification issued on Monday by the office of the Inspector General of Police stated: “In order to maintain discipline, uniformity, and dignity of the force, it is hereby directed that no GB police officer/official shall use the social media platform (TikTok).”

All District Police Officers and Unit Heads have been instructed to convey the directive to their respective staff. The notification further warns that any violation of the order will result in disciplinary action.

The ban has been implemented with the approval of the competent authority.

Gilgit-Baltistan police bar officers from using TikTok

CHILAS: The Gilgit-Baltistan police officials have been barred from using social media platform TikTok in order to maintain “discipline

arynews.tv

 

[BouncerGuy]

US says 'framework' for TikTok ownership deal agreed with China

Washington has reached a "framework" deal with China on TikTok's US operations, paving the way for American ownership, as the world's two biggest economies negotiate a trade deal.

The framework was set in talks in Madrid, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday, adding that President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping would "complete" the deal on Friday.

Trump said on Truth Social that the talks had "gone very well". China confirmed a framework agreement but said no deal would be made at the expense of their firms' interests.

A Wednesday deadline looms for TikTok's Chinese owner to find a buyer for US operations or face a ban in the country over national security concerns.

The deadline for a sale has since been extended three times already and the latest delay is due to end on 17 September.

The BBC's US partner CBS reported late on Monday that Oracle was among a group of firms that would enable TikTok operations to continue in the US if a deal between Washington and Beijing is finalised.

The BBC has contacted Oracle, TikTok, the White House and the Chinese embassy in Washington DC for comment.

The ownership of TikTok has been a major sticking point in US-China trade talks. It was seen by observers as key to Beijing's efforts to negotiate lower tariffs and fewer trade barriers with the US, one of China's biggest markets.

Bessent announced the "framework" deal after the second day of negotiations to end a trade war which, at its peak, saw tariffs on some goods hit145%.

The agreed upon commercial terms would protect US national security interests, he added.

US trade representative Jamieson Greer, part of the delegation in Madrid, said the deal struck was "subject to the leaders' approval", but added his team was "not... in the business of having repetitive [ban] extensions".

China's top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, said his country would not reach a deal with the US at the expense of its own principles and its leadership would review any deal before it was agreed.

In January, the US Supreme Court upheld a law passed in April 2024, banning TikTok unless its parent company ByteDance sold its US division.

TikTok went dark for a day that month after the law came into effect, before Trump intervened and issued a 75-day postponement.

The US Justice Department has said TikTok's access to data on American users poses "a national-security threat of immense depth and scale".

But ByteDance has repeatedly insisted that its US operations are fully independent and no data has been shared with the Chinese government. The company also argued that the ban would violate free speech protections for its 170 million US users.

Various figures have previously been touted as potential buyers of the platform, including Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, YouTube creator MrBeast and billionaire investor Frank McCourt.

'Backdoor' for Beijing?

Details of the deal remain sparse and some experts are sceptical over issues including who will control TikTok's powerful recommendation algorithm.

It is also unclear if the data of TikTok's American users would be fully stored and encrypted domestically, and whether there would be independent audits to detect backdoor access by Beijing, said Sarah Kreps, director of the Tech Policy Institute at Cornell University.

"Until these details are clarified, the risk is that the deal resolves ownership on paper but leaves core vulnerabilities untouched," she added.

Jim Secreto, a former national security official in the Biden administration, said Beijing has control over whether the algorithm will be transferred to a new owner, which is probably why the TikTok deal was folded into broader trade and tariff negotiations.

If national security concerns were addressed, the deal "would be a major breakthrough," he said.

He added that the stakes were high as ByteDance was now one of the largest AI firms in China - but is still operating as it did when Congress decided action was necessary.

"The data TikTok collects from Americans today could help train the models that power China's military and intelligence capabilities tomorrow," Mr Secreto said.

BBC

 

[light]

Seems every other day, we have news of someone getting killed/injured doing TikTok videos or we have other unfortunate incidents related to it.

So question is, is there any benefit to society from this craze or should we ban it for good?

Not benifical for you or me maybe but to a content creator, that's probably one of their source of income. Also, lots of online store uses tiktok to market their product. It's how one decides to use it I suppose.

 

[Bhaijaan]

TikTok, like most social media, isn’t just harmless fun. The trends are designed to grab your attention, make you want things you don’t need, and push you to spend more and more. It keeps people stuck in a loop of working, buying, and repeating the same cycle.

Many young people believe they are in control, yet algorithms quietly shape their thoughts, desires, and actions. The result is a gradual erosion of critical thinking and a rise in anxiety, stress, and anger. In chasing digital validation, users often lose real-world connections with friends and family, trading authentic relationships for the fleeting attention of anonymous strangers.

This is a reason why I have planned a digital break for myself at 69k. I have realized that from some time I’ve not been in full control of my thoughts, desires and actions which has been a disturbing find. I want to once again take control of my myself and I have concluded that it would be impossible to do so without a self imposed exile from digital media.

 

[BouncerGuy]

Trump and Xi discuss future of TikTok in US

US President Donald Trump has said that he and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping approved a deal on the future of TikTok's US operations during a phone call on Friday, although there was no confirmation from Beijing.

Trump wrote on Truth Social that the call was "productive" and he "appreciated" Xi's approval of deal, which would reportedly see TikTok's US business sold to a group of US investors.

China's official state news agency Xinhua left the outcome of their discussion less clear, with Xi quoted as saying that Beijing "welcomes negotiations over TikTok".

TikTok, which is run by Chinese firm ByteDance, was previously told it had to sell its US operations or risk being shut down.

Trump, however, delayed implementing the ban four times since it was first announced in January, and earlier this week extended the deadline again to December.

In his post, Trump wrote the two had "made progress" on trade issues and would meet at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit, scheduled to begin at the end of October in South Korea, and said he would travel to China.

"I also agreed with President Xi that we would meet at the Apec Summit in South Korea, that I would go to China in the early part of next year," Trump said, adding that Xi would travel to the US at "an appropriate time".

Trump told reporters on Friday afternoon that a deal still had to be signed, and signalled there could be a formal process to do so soon.

"We look forward to getting that deal closed," he said, adding that the US would have "very tight control" of the app.

That deal will reportedly see a group of US firms - said to include Oracle, which was co-founded by Trump ally Larry Ellison - that would enable TikTok to continue operating in the US, using algorithm technology licensed from ByteDance.

A sticking point in negotiations appears to be who will own the powerful algorithm that pushes content to TikTok's 170 million American users.

Speaking alongside British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in the UK on Thursday, Trump sidestepped a question from a reporter about whether an American buyer would need to build a new algorithm, or if they could continue to use the current algorithm.

Trump added he believes TikTok has "tremendous value" to the US.

"The people that are investing it are among the greatest investors in the world," he said. "And they'll do a great job - and we're doing it in conjunction with China."

Xinhua reported that China's position on TikTok is "very clear" and that it welcomed firms to "conduct commercial negotiations based on market rules and reach solutions that comply with Chinese laws and regulations and a balance of interests".

"We hope that the US will provide an open, fair and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese companies to invest in the United States," it added.

A statement by ByteDance on Friday cast further doubt on the status of a deal.

"ByteDance will work in accordance with applicable laws to ensure TikTok remains available to American users through TikTok US," a ByteDance spokesperson said.

The spokesperson thanked both presidents for "their efforts to preserve TikTok in the United States".

Many US lawmakers - including some from within Trump's own party - have expressed unease with the prospect of a deal, citing ongoing concerns about ByteDance's links with the Chinese Communist Party, or CCP.

"I am concerned the reported licensing deal may involve ongoing reliance by the new TikTok on a ByteDance algorithm that could allow continued CCP control or influence," Michigan Republican representative John Moolenar, chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, said in a statement.

While Trump initially called for TikTok to be banned during his first term, he has changed course, and on Thursday said he viewed the platform as a key part of his 2024 electoral campaign.

In January, the US Supreme Court upheld a law first passed in early 2024, banning the app unless ByteDance divested from its US operations. The app went "dark" only briefly at the time, before the ban was delayed.

The US Department of Justice previously expressed concerns that TikTok's access to the data of US users posed a national security threat of "immense depth and scale".

The call between Xi and Trump is the second so far this year.

In June, the two leaders spoke to discuss China's export of rare earth minerals, resulting in China agreeing to approve a "certain number" of export permits to US companies, as well as the magnets made from them.

Chinese and US officials have held four rounds of talks in recent months, and so far held off on implementing extremely high tariffs and strict export controls.

The US has already imposed 20% tariffs on some Chinese goods it says are linked to fentanyl trafficking.

Other thorny issues - including tech export restrictions and Chinese purchases of US agricultural products - so far remain unresolved.

BBC