TikTok prepares for immediate and abrupt US shutdown on Sunday: Report

TikTok is reportedly preparing for an immediate and complete shutdown on Sunday, January 19, according to The Information. People familiar with the matter told the publication that the app will be abruptly switched off in the US following a potential ban rather than remaining operational for people who have already downloaded it. That means if you’re a US TikTok user, you might lose functionality completely on Sunday unless the Supreme Court intervenes and blocks the upcoming ban. New downloads on app stores like Apple and Google would also no longer be possible.

Under the reported plan, if TikTok is indeed banned on January 19, users will see a pop-up message when they open the app, redirecting them to a website with information about the shutdown. The platform will apparently allow existing users to download their data and personal information following the ban and shutdown.

A law passed last year in the US could result in TikTok being banned nationwide unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells the app’s US operations to an American company. Rumor had it that the Chinese government was considering approaching Elon Musk to buy TikTok in the US, but the platform was quick to rubbish these reports, calling them “pure fiction.”

For now, it looks like the Supreme Court would likely uphold the law, signaling that TikTok’s days in the US are numbered. Users have also started flocking to alternative apps in anticipation of the ban.