The state legislature in Montana passed a bill that would ban new downloads of the TikTok social media application in the state, and the governor is expected to sign it.
The bill would block downloads and ban the company from operating in the state but would not disallow the use of the application by those who have already downloaded it onto their phones.
54 lawmakers voted in favor of the bill, while 43 voted against it.
Critics of the application have warned about Chinese communist surveillance issues with TikTok after the Chinese regime passed a law that would allow the government to use data from any company to further the interests of the state. Software experts have also found that the application is designed in an intrusive manner in order to garner as much data from users’ phones as possible.
Many states, including Montana, have passed legislation to ban the use of TikTok on state-funded devices used by employees and contractors of the government, but Montana’s new legislation would expand the restrictions to all users within the state.
Some business owners have criticized the law because it would completely sever the social media marketing campaigns they have used on the popular app.
Others have warned that a ban on the social media application could be considered to be a violation of free speech rights in the First Amendment.
A spokesperson for TikTok implied that the company would be suing Montana based to defend users’ rights to watch short, addictive dancing videos on their phones.
“The bill’s champions have admitted that they have no feasible plan for operationalizing this attempt to censor American voices and that the bill’s constitutionality will be decided by the courts,” said spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter.
“We will continue to fight for TikTok users and creators in Montana whose livelihoods and First Amendment rights are threatened by this egregious government overreach,” she concluded.
Here’s more about communist TikTok surveillance:
Why You Need to Delete TikTok RIGHT NOW | Glenn TV | Ep 263www.youtube.com
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