Tag: tiktok,
TikTok and Temu pull cheap heaters over fire risk
Montana TikTok users file lawsuit challenging ban
A group of TikTok creators have sued to block a recently signed law that bans the app’s operation in Montana. The suit, filed last night and announced today, alleges that Montana’s SB 419 is an unconstitutional and overly broad infringement of their right to speech.
“Montana has no authority to enact laws advancing what it believes should be the United States’ foreign policy or its national security interests, nor may Montana ban an entire forum for communication based on its perceptions that some speech shared through that forum, though protected by the First Amendment, is dangerous,” says the suit, filed by law firm Davis Wright Tremaine. “Montana can no more ban its residents from viewing or posting to TikTok than it could ban the W…
Montana TikTok creators shrug off state’s ban on app
TikTok creators sue Montana over statewide ban of the app
One day after Montana Governor signed the first statewide ban on TikTok into law, the measure is already facing a legal challenge. Five TikTok creators are suing in an effort to block the ban from taking effect.
In court filings, lawyers representing the TikTok creators say the ban is unconstitutional and that it violates their First Amendment rights. They also take issue with Montana’s supposed national security justification for the ban.
“Montana has no authority to enact laws advancing what it believes should be the United States’ foreign policy or its national security interests, nor may Montana ban an entire forum for communication based on its perceptions that some speech shared through that forum, though protected by the First Amendment, is dangerous,” the suit states. “Montana can no more ban its residents from viewing or posting to TikTok than it could ban the Wall Street Journal because of who owns it or the ideas it publishes.”
In an interview on Fox News, Montana’s Attorney General, Austin Knudsen, said that legal challenges to the ban were expected. “There are some important issues here that I do think we probably need the federal courts to step in and answer for us here,” he said. “And that was part of our calculus in bringing this.”
The lawsuit is among the first legal challenges to the law, and will likely be closely watched as federal officials consider a nationwide ban on the app. Right now, the Montana ban is set to take effect January 1, 2024, though lawsuits challenging it could delay that timeline. TikTok itself hasn’t commented on whether it’s planning to bring its own litigation in Montana, but said in a statement following the bill’s signing that it planned “to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana.”
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tiktok-creators-sue-montana-over-statewide-ban-of-the-app-225725851.html?src=rss
Hyundai and Kia agree to $200 million settlement over TikTok car theft challenge
Hyundai and Kia agreed to a $200 million settlement stemming from a class-action lawsuit related to a rash of car thefts inspired by a viral social media challenge on TikTok.
The so-called “Kia Challenge” on the social media platform has led to hundreds of car thefts nationwide, including at least 14 reported crashes and eight fatalities, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Thieves known as “the Kia Boyz” would post instructional videos on YouTube and TikTok about how to bypass the vehicles’ security system using tools as simple as a USB cable.
The thefts are reportedly easy to pull off because many Hyundai and Kia vehicles manufactured between 2015-2019 lack electronic immobilizers that prevent would-be…
You can still use TikTok even if it’s banned
With a TikTok ban hitting Montana and dozens of other, more nuanced bans of the app across the world, there’s a chance you might see yourself in a situation in which you want to scroll through your FYP amidst a ban. Enter: VPNs and cross-state travel.
Where is TikTok banned?
First, let’s back up: The U.S. government has been threatening some kind of TikTok ban since at least 2019 when Senators Marco Rubio, Tom Cotton, and Chuck Schumer asked the government to investigate the app over its connection with the Chinese government. (Its developer, ByteDance, is a Chinese company.) Eventually presidents — including both Donald Trump and Joe Biden — looked into banning the app. But no bans have been as strict or aggressive as the ban in Montana.
On Wednesday, Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signed a bill into law that bans TikTok in the state. The law will go into effect on January 1, 2024, but only if the courts don’t stop it by then. Users can still download the app, upload content, and scroll along for the next seven months without a worry, but if — and that’s a big if — the ban does go through, you’ll have to jump through some hoops.
How to use TikTok in a banned state
We can’t recommend that you use TikTok if it is banned, but there aren’t currently any laws that would punish users for doing so.
Currently, the only active TikTok bans in the U.S., other than the Montana drama, are on government devices and on most public university campuses. This basically means that you can’t download or use TikTok on your government-owned cell phones and, if you’re on a college campus, you can’t use the university WiFi while using the app.
To use TikTok while avoiding the ban on university campuses you could, hypothetically, use cellular data or personal WiFi — as long as it isn’t on a university-owned device or on university WiFi, you’re good. That’s a bit different if the app is banned across an entire state, though.
If a ban actually goes through in Montana, users can, hypothetically, travel to other states or countries to download TikTok, but the easiest way to get around a ban is to, hypothetically, use a VPN. A VPN, or virtual private network, cloaks your current location. Folks use it to watch shows that aren’t available in their country or unblock Pornhub in Utah, so it’s sure to be a useful tool if TikTok bans go into effect.
There are plenty of VPNs available — free or paid, as apps or browser extensions — so pick your poison.