Canadian officials have ordered TikTok to “wind down” its operations in the country – resulting in the permanent closure of its Vancouver and Toronto offices. However, the popular video-sharing app will still be accessible to the average Canadian.
The order follows similar crackdowns being made globally, with the US inching closer to a nationwide TikTok ban, and the Chinese-owned company currently being reviewed by the EU Commission over its shady data-handling practices.
TikTok is fighting back, claiming that the order isn’t in any party’s best interest. But while this latest order won’t have much impact on Canadian TikTokers, as the walls slowly close in on the Chinese-owned social media app: is the clock really ticking for users in the US?
Canada Shuts Down TikTok Offices After Security Review
The Canadian Government recently decided to dissolve TikTok’s business operations, resulting in a closure of the Chinese-owned company’s Toronto and Vancouver offices.
The decision was reached after a national security review, which concluded that the short-form video app and its parent company ByteDance Ltd posed “specific security risks”, which needed to be addressed. Canadian’s can still access the app to view and create content, however.
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Canadian officials begun reviewing TikTok’s plan to expand its business in the country last year. The Government was able to investigate the social media company as they believed it posed potential risks to national security.
“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” – François-Philippe Champagne, Innovation Minister of Canada
While the Canadian Government has already reached its verdict, TikTok plans to fight back. According to a TikTok spokesperson, the company plans to challenge the order in court, as shutting down TikTok’s Canadian office and “destroying hundreds of well-paying jobs is not in anyone’s best interest”.
Use TikTok With Caution, Canadian Officials Warn
So, what will the dissolution of Canada’s TikTok business operations mean for the average TikTok user? Well, the answer is not much, as the app will still remain available for public use across the country.
““The government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content. The decision to use a social media application or platform is a personal choice.” – François-Philippe Champagne, Innovation Minister of Canada
However, despite getting free rein to use the app as they please, Canadian officials warn users to do so with caution. Specifically, in a public statement from the Government of Canada, Champagne urged the country’s citizens to adopt good cybersecurity measures when using the app, including being mindful of how their information is likely to be protected, managed, and used by foreign actors.
However, while regular Canadians still have access to the app, this week’s development comes a year after Canada banned TikTok from government-issued devices, claiming that the app posed an “unacceptable” level of risk to the nation’s privacy and security.
Canada’s privacy commissioner is also currently investigating the Chinese-owned company’s collection, use, and disclosure of personal data, and it’s possible the inquiry’s verdict could shape laws around the public’s use of the app going forward.
Is the Clock Ticking For TikTok In the US?
While Canada’s recent order won’t have much of an impact on the average TikToker, regulatory crackdowns on the app are taking place on home soil, with the US Government planning to ban the app for regular users on January 19, 2025.
Similarly to Canada, the US is concerned about TikTok’s potential risks to national security and has already banned the app from appearing on Government devices. The app has been under investigation for years, but the inquiry reached a fever pitch this July when the US Justice Department issued a warning about the company sending “significant amounts” of US personal data back to the Chinese government.
Specifically, the US agency accused the ByteDance-owned app of using internal tools to scrape the data of millions of US citizens, on issues ranging from gun control and abortion to voting intention. The US filing also suggests TikTok could be guilty of censoring content based on “the user’s use of certain words”.
If you’re currently using the app to create content, or doom scroll through entertaining and irreverent content, there is good news. The ban will only take place if TikTok won’t find a US company to store national data, and if the the company doesn’t guarantee no user data is being sent back to China.
The US government can also extend the deadline by up to 90 days if it believes progress is being made with the sale, which could push back its potential ban date to April of next year. However, it’s worth noting that the TikTok ban was spearheaded by the Democrats, and could well be overturned once the Republicans take office in the new year.
Ultimately, the ball remains in TikTok’s court, but it’s uncertain whether the company will be willing to make the changes necessary to remain in the country. While a blanket ban on the app will probably positively impact the nation’s screen time, it will also be a huge disappointment to the 120.5 million active US users who rely on the app for community, recommendations, and light-hearted escapism.
