Warning issued to anyone in US trying to use TikTok after its ‘immediate shutdown’ this weekend

Experts are warning what could happen to your TikTok app if the Supreme Court fail to block the social media platform’s ban in the United States this weekend.

For many, the nightmare is becoming a reality — TikTok will no longer be available to download in the United States after officials accused it and its parent company, ByteDance, of being a ‘national threat’ and having ties to the Chinese government.

When the legislation to ban the short-form video-sharing app was signed by President Joe Biden in April 2024, ByteDance denied reports that it was considering selling its US operations.

Tom Barrett, a technology researcher at the United States Studies Centre, told ABC that the US government is worried about the data of 170 million Americans who use the app being handed over to Beijing.

The company, which has also been described as fully independent, claims it ‘has not provided user data to the Chinese government, nor would [they] if asked’, with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew adding it would fight the law, branding it ‘unconstitutional’.

Joe Biden signed the legislation banning TikTok last April (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

What will happen amid the TikTok ban?

This Sunday (19 January) is the deadline given to ByteDance to sell its US operations to an American company.

And unless the Supreme Court steps in, the app will be forced to cease operations in the territory.

The BBC states the ban would order app stores, such as the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store, to make it unavailable to download.

However, questions have been raised regarding whether those who already have the app downloaded on their electronic device would still be able to access it when the ban comes into effect.

Reuters reports that TikTok plans to shut down its app nationwide following the decision on Sunday.

Experts warn the app could pose as a security risk to users

Meanwhile, the BBC predicts updates from the app will not be made available in the US, claiming it could become buggy and present hackers with ‘millions of devices to target’.

"If you already have TikTok on your phone you can still use it, but over time you will not receive any updates, so the app will become obsolete," Qi Liao, a professor of computer and network security at Central Michigan University, explained to CBS MoneyWatch.

"Various issues could arise because TikTok may introduce new features or security patches, and the app in the US will have a sluggish performance as well as security issues. So eventually TikTok users will probably stop using the vulnerable version.”

A lack of updates has also been forecasted by Dr. Gabriela Zanfir-Fortuna, vice president for global privacy at the Future of Privacy Forum.

She told TODAY.com: "My understanding is that the current users will be able to continue using it, but it's just they won't be able to download updates or anything like that.

"The app won’t be available on the App Store for new downloads, you know, for new users.

Users are already flocking to other apps to get their social media fix (Getty Stock Images)

"And then, of course, if you don’t have updates to your apps in the long term, this might not make it possible to have it [be] functional.”

Timothy Edgar, a professor of cybersecurity at Brown University, instead believes that the app will be ‘immediately’ unavailable to use.

“[Users] will get a notice that says, 'This service is not available in your country'," he explained to CBS MoneyWatch.

"That's most likely what will happen based on what we've seen in other countries that have banned certain platforms."

TikTok alternatives to try out if the ban goes ahead

Luckily, there are some alternatives to TikTok which thousands of US citizens have already started ‘migrating to’.

Most notable is RedNote, a Chinese social media app founded in 2013 by Shanghai-based Xingyin Information Technology.

Bloomberg reports that its hugely popular in Mandarin-speaking countries, with 300 million monthly active users.

“RedNote is a mix of Instagram, Pinterest and TikTok,” William Wang, a Chinese RedNote content creator, told Sky News.

“But TikTok is heavily focused on short-form videos. You just keep scrolling and that's how you consume all the content. But RedNote is more dynamic.”

Other popular alternatives include the Meta-owned Instagram and Facebook apps, Snapchat, and also YouTube Shorts.