TikTok has been restored on both the Apple App Store and Google Play Store for iOS and Android users after being removed on January 18.
The Chinese-owned social media platform returned on Thursday evening, nearly a month after its removal.
TikTok was taken down just before a national security law, signed by former U.S. President Joe Biden in April 2022, took effect on January 19.
The law required ByteDance, TikTok’s China-based parent company, to divest its U.S. operations or face a ban due to concerns over data privacy and potential ties to the Chinese government. In response, TikTok temporarily halted its U.S. service.
Leading up to the deadline, TikTok argued that the law violated the First Amendment rights of its 170 million U.S. users. However, the U.S. government insisted that ByteDance’s ownership posed a national security risk.
In January, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration, upholding the requirement for ByteDance to divest its operations. The court cited national security threats linked to data privacy and foreign influence.
Despite this ruling, TikTok resisted the law, threatening to shut down its U.S. operations unless the Biden administration intervened. Former President Donald Trump later postponed the law’s
