Montana Just Banned TikTok — How Does That Actually Work?

Montana has become the first state to officially ban the wildly popular social media platform TikTok, over concerns about access to user data by the Chinese government.

The state’s new law, signed Wednesday by Gov. Greg Gianforte (R), comes after some states and the federal government banned the app on devices they own. But Montana’s more-sweeping policy will be hard to enforce in a meaningful way. 

Why did Montana ban TikTok?

TikTok, which allows users to post short form videos, has emerged as a competitor to established platforms like Facebook and Snapchat. The app has come under increased scrutiny as its parent company, ByteDance, is Chinese owned and operated, which has led to concerns among state and federal officials that the Chinese government could access users' data. Whether this is the case is complicated. 

“The Chinese Communist Party using TikTok to spy on Americans, violate their privacy, and collect their personal, private, and sensitive information is well-documented,” Gianforte said in a press release. “Today, Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect Montanans’ private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party.”

The House Energy and Commerce Committee grilled TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at a hearing in March, and the Biden administration has been mulling a national ban of the app. 

“In a geopolitical context, it’s viewed as problematic because it is something outside of our control,” Jess Maddox, an assistant professor of digital media technology at the University of Alabama told me and my colleague Lili Pike prior to the hearing. “We’ve all heard the hypotheticals about what TikTok and [its owner] ByteDance in China could be doing with our data. I think it comes down to a lack of control over user data and user protections.”

How will the Montana law work?

The Montana Department of Justice will be able to fine app store owners like Apple and Google if they make TikTok available for download to state residents. ByteDance could also be fined. The penalty set by the law is $10,000 for each discrete violation and another $10,000 for each day a company continues violating the statute. 

Why would that be hard to enforce?

There are numerous ways for people to digitally circumvent the Montana law and access TikTok even if major app stores bar state residents from downloading it. Tools like virtual private networks – popularly known as VPNs – allow users to hide their true location. Privacy-focused browsers like TOR can also mask a user’s geographic location and prevent law enforcement officials from monitoring what sites they visit online.

Because the law sets penalties for distributors of TikTok, not the app’s users, there’s no legal downside for Montanans to try technological workarounds to download, view and post to TikTok. 

Could the law be overturned?

The law is likely to face legal challenges from TikTok, and potentially other affected parties.
 
"Governor Gianforte has signed a bill that infringes on the First Amendment rights of the people of Montana by unlawfully banning TikTok, a platform that empowers hundreds of thousands of people across the state," said TikTok in a statement Wednesday. "We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana."

The American Civil Liberties Union of Montana in a statement accused state officials of violating residents' rights. "Governor Gianforte and the Montana legislature have trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small business in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment,” said Keegan Medrano, the group's policy director.