The most straightforward way for the US to ban TikTok would be to remove it from app stores, such as those operated by Apple and Google for iOS and Android devices. App stores are how most people download apps on to their smartphones and tablets, so the ban would stop new users from getting TikTok.

TikTok will be in federal court on Monday, aiming to block a new law that will ban the popular video app in the United States early next year.

TikTok today will make its case in court against a bill that would require it to be divested by its Chinese parent company, Bytedance, or else risk a nationwide ban. Why it matters: TikTok is one of America's largest social media platforms,

Under the law, ByteDance would have to sell TikTok — a sale that the Chinese government has said is illegal under Chinese law — or see it banned in the United States as of January 19, 2025. ByteDance, TikTok, and “creators” who post on the app have challenged the law, arguing (among other things) that it violates the First Amendment.

TikTok faced sharp questions from a US appeals court on Monday as the company scrambles to block a law that will force China-based ByteDance to sell the video-sharing app by Jan. 19 or face a total ban.

TikTok has until January 2025 to sell the social media platform worth an estimated US $50bn or face it being blocked in the States

The following month, it was announced that a federal appeals court would be hearing the case in September. The case heads to court on Monday morning to be heard before a three-judge panel. Attorneys for both sides of the argument will be present. The case is anticipated to reach the US Supreme Court.

TikTok faced off with the U.S. government in federal court on Monday, arguing a law that could ban the platform in a few short months is unconstitutional while the Justice Department said it is needed to eliminate a national security risk posed by the popular social media company.

A three-judge panel for the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit signaled skepticism of TikTok’s argument Monday that the law signed by President Biden banning the video-sharing app would violate the company’s free speech rights.