TikTok has until November 12 before it is shut down in the United States, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in an interview on Friday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2020) TikTok has until November 12 before it is shut down in the United States, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said in an interview on Friday.
The US announced earlier that it will block business transactions with the Chinese video sharing app and another called WeChat starting on Sunday.
"Our rule is not doing the same thing to TikTok as WeChat," Ross said, clarifying the Commerce Department statement that President Donald Trump's executive orders blocking US usage of the two apps will be enforced from September 20. "WeChat US, for all practical purposes, will be shut down. As for TikTok, it's just upgrades, maintenance... things like that would be shut down at this stage. The real shutdown will come November 12, in the event that there is not another transaction."
The statement said the prohibitions in the order can be lifted if "the national security concerns posed by TikTok" can be resolved through ongoing negotiations.
Trump has accused the two apps of being tools of the ruling Chinese Communist Party and that American users of the services could have their personal data stolen.
