Yahoo News TikTok restores service after going dark; Donald Trump says he'll issue order on day 1: Recap
TikTok returns: The mega-popular social media platform welcomed American users back on Sunday after going dark for less than 24 hours.
TikTok assured users that it's in the "process of restoring its service" in the United States in a statement posted on X. As of Sunday afternoon, most users have regained access, while some were still encountering restrictions or hiccups.
"We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States," TikTok said in its statement. The app's restoration came after President-elect Donald Trump vowed to sign an executive order on his first day in office temporarily halting a ban on the platform.
On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld a law that effectively banned TikTok in the U.S., starting today. The decision sided with the government's national security concerns about the social media platform and its parent company, ByteDance, over arguments about free speech.
Catch up with the USA TODAY Network's updates on the TikTok ban and what it means for users:
TikTok returns as app works on restoring service
In a little more than just 12 hours since the app went dark, TikTok was being restored in the U.S., the platform said in a statement Sunday afternoon.
"In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service," the TikTok Policy X account posted on Sunday. "We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over seven million small businesses to thrive. It’s a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States."
As of Sunday afternoon, users reported a mix of accessibility, with some having full access to the platform on web browsers and in the mobile app, with others able to access the full website and only parts of the app.
Is TikTok banned in the US?
A law effectively banning the TikTok app in the U.S. has gone into effect today. App stores removed the app, but they won't delete it from devices on which it has been installed.
TikTok said Sunday afternoon it was in the process of restoring services, but the app does not yet appear to be back in app stores.
Did TikTok shut down today?
Yes. TikTok went dark Saturday night, shortly before legislation banning the app went into effect Sunday.
A little more than 12 hours after it shut down, TikTok released a statement that they were restoring service, and some users were able to access the app again.
Can I still use TikTok after the ban?
People attempting to open the app early Sunday were greeted by a pop-up message directing them to a site with details about the ban or prompting them to close the app. Some users were able to access TikTok on a web browser Sunday.
Following the ban Sunday, TikTok users could access and download their data.
By Sunday afternoon, TikTok said it was in the process of restoring service for the app.
Can I bypass the TikTok ban using VPN?
VPNs, or virtual private networks that hide your IP address and online activity by routing your internet traffic through a different location, aren’t working for most people.
“No luck with a VPN. Tried accessing from both Australia and the UK,” one person wrote on Reddit. “I’m actually outside the US right now and it still doesn’t work for even me,” another wrote.
Other workarounds like using the Tor browser, which allows people to use the internet anonymously by masking where their online traffic is coming from, also did not work.
What other apps have been banned?
Along with TikTok, other apps that shut down included Lemon8, CapCut − Video Editor and Marvel Snap, as each platform has a tie to TikTok parent company ByteDance.
Will TikTok have to sell in order to operate in the US?
The law that bans TikTok in the U.S. could be disrupted if the social media app is sold. The legislation that the Supreme Court upheld called for TikTok to sell its U.S. operations or face a ban.
Prospective and rumored buyers of the platform include YouTuber MrBeast, Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt's Project Liberty and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, among others.
TikTok ban cited in Wisconsin fire
A 19-year-old suspect cited the TikTok ban as the reason for setting a U.S. congressman’s office on fire in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, early Sunday morning.
The man, whose name was not immediately released, is being held at Fond du Lac County Jail and a charge of arson is being referred to the district attorney’s office, police said.
“We are relieved that no one was injured and the office was unoccupied at the time of the fire,” Fond du Lac Police Chief Aaron Goldstein said in a release.
Can Trump save TikTok?
President-elect Donald Trump, who first called for a TikTok ban during his first administration, has now said he intends to "save" the social media platform.
In a post on Truth Social, he said he intends to issue an executive order extending the period before the law would take effect and would allow the app to continue operating. He also said he "would like the United States to have a 50% ownership position in a joint venture."
President Joe Biden declined to enforce the TikTok ban and decided this week to leave it up to incoming President Trump.
What happens to my TikTok shop orders?
TikTok Shop's future remains uncertain at this time. For users who have placed orders or are waiting for an order to be processed or delivered, it is not clear how the ban will impact those orders.
Representatives for the social media company did not immediately respond about how the ban will impact TikTok Shop when contacted by USA TODAY.
House Speaker says they ‘will enforce the law’ against TikTok
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said the U.S. government will enforce the law banning TikTok, amid calls from President-elect Donald Trump to pause prohibitions.
Earlier Sunday, Trump wrote “SAVE TIKTOK!” in a post on Truth Social. Johnson told NBC’s Kristen Welker he understood that to mean that the president-elect – self-described and touted by allies as a master dealmaker – would want the chance to force TikTok’s China-based owners to sell.
“It’s not the platform that members of Congress are concerned about. It’s the Chinese Communist party,” Johnson told NBC. “The Chinese Communist Party is not our friend, and we have to make sure this changes hands."
Trump shortly after posted on Truth Social that he intends to issue an executive order extending the period before the law would take effect.
The House Speaker said he is confident Trump, the leader of his party, will be able to find a solution. On Friday, Trump said he spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping and that in that conversation, the pair discussed several issues, including TikTok.
TikTok website appears back online
Despite the ban implemented on Saturday night, the TikTok website was accessible again on desktop internet browsers around 11:15 a.m. ET on Sunday, USA TODAY staff and several sources confirmed. Users could access the website, including their curated feeds, messages and profiles. The TikTok website was at least accessible on Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and Apple's Safari.
TikTok users have also taken to other social media platforms like X to share that they can access the TikTok website.
TikTok did not immediately respond for comment about the accessible website when contacted by USA TODAY on Sunday morning.
What is RedNote?
As the ban on TikTok loomed, another Chinese social media app — Xiaohongshu ("little red book"), or RedNote — gained popularity in the U.S.
RedNote, launched in 2013, has become one of the fastest-growing social platforms in China. Interest in the app, which is currently No. 1 in the Apple app store's "Top Free Apps," picked up in the U.S. as TikTok users search for alternatives. RedNote has been compared to both Instagram and Pinterest.
What are the TikTok alternative apps?
RedNote isn't the only app seeing a jump in new users as the TikTok ban takes effect.
In addition to Meta's Facebook Reels and Instagram Reels, other social media platforms that have been gaining traction as TikTok users explore alternatives to the video-sharing app include YouTube Shorts, Fanbase and Twitch.
Where is TikTok not banned?
TikTok remains available in most countries, but the U.S. is not the only country in which the social media app has been banned or limited.
Here are some of the other countries that have banned TikTok or have implemented restrictions or censorship around the app's usage:
China. Though TikTok was created by a Chinese-based parent company, TikTok isn't available in China and ByteDance instead has a separate app, Douyin, for Chinese-language users.
India
European Union (banned on government staff devices)
Canada (banned on government-issued phones)
Britain (banned on government or civil servant devices)
Australia (banned on federal government devices)
Taiwan
Pakistan
New Zealand
When did TikTok come out in the US?
TikTok first launched in the United States in 2018, and the app quickly became the most downloaded social and entertainment app in the world.
Who wanted to ban TikTok?
In 2020, then-President Donald Trump issued an executive order aimed at banning TikTok, following an investigation over national security concerns that began in November 2019. The executive order was blocked by a federal judge and later postponed.
TikTok was banned from government-issued devices in 2023, and in 2024 the Congress passed and President Joe Biden signed the TikTok sell-or-ban bill.
Is Trump talking to the TikTok CEO?
President-elect Trump said Friday that he discussed TikTok in a call with Chinese President Xi Jinping hours before the Supreme Court upheld the ban.
TikTok's CEO Shou Zi Chew is set to attend the inauguration Monday, and he thanked Donald Trump in TikTok's response Friday to the Supreme Court decision.
More: TikTok ban looms, leaving content creators' livelihoods in jeopardy
Contributing: Maureen Groppe, Mike Snider, Rebecca Morin, Jonathan Limehouse, Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY; Brandon Reid, USA TODAY Network
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: TikTok returns as service restored after Trump assurance: Replay
