The US state of Montana’s residents are not allowed to access “TikTok’s social media network;” therefore, the company has filed a lawsuit to stop that.
Following Montana’s passage of a broad ban on the Chinese-owned video-sharing network last week, the complaint was filed on Monday.
The prohibition violates US free expression rights, according to a statement from TikTok.
TikTok has drawn the attention of authorities from all across the world due to worries that data might be sent to the Chinese government.
The case, which was submitted on Monday to the District of Montana’s US District Court, claims that its goal is to invalidate the “illegal” restriction.
The “First Amendment right” to free speech is allegedly violated by the prohibition, according to the TikTok lawsuit.
In January 2024, the ban is expected to become law. However, it does not prevent those who already own TikTok from using it. It will make it unlawful for app shops to sell TikTok.
In December of last year, Montana, a state with a little more than a million residents, prohibited the software from being used on official computers.
In America, TikTok claims to have 150 million users. Even though the number of users of the app has grown recently, teenagers and users in their 20s continue to be its most devoted followers.
The idea that TikTok might pose a threat to national safety is, however, causing stress across the political spectrum in the United States.
ByteDance is a Chinese corporation that owns the social media platform. The Chinese government’s authority over ByteDance has been refuted time and time again.
The lawsuit claims that the federal government should be in charge of matters such as user data and national security, and Montana exceeded its bounds in this regard.
The “unfounded assumption” that the Chinese government may access TikTok data, according to the statement, is the basis for the restriction.
In the past, attorneys for the state of Montana have stated that they anticipate legal challenges and are ready to defend the prohibition in court.
