Following the previous executive order, President Donald Trump has issued a second that requires ByteDance to sell TikTok within ninety days. Adding to the demands, the President has also ordered that the Chinese company deletes any data on American users that it currently holds. This does not appear to be a replacement of the original order, but more of a clarification of the path forward.
Over the past few weeks and months, TikTok has come under sustained scrutiny over the way users act within the app, and also, the way the app acts behind the scenes. The latter of which had led to many claims that the app is not much more than a data collection tool for the Chinese government. Eventually, President Trump issued an executive order that amounted to a TikTok ban, with the deadline set for mid-September.
Following that initial order, President Trump’s latest order demands ByteDance sells TikTok within ninety days, if any part of the service is to continue operating in the United States. Furthermore, the order also makes it clear that TikTok is expected to destroy any and all data related to users based in the U.S. In explaining the reasoning behind the latest order, the President said that there is “credible evidence” to suggest ByteDance “might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States.” The order is specifically focused on dismantling ByteDance’s previous acquisition of Muscial.ly, the purchase that eventually led to the creation of the U.S. version of TikTok.
An Unusual Situation Leads To A Second Order
While it seems unusual for two orders that appear to contain different deadlines, being released in quick succession, this is anything but a usual situation in general. To date, there has still been little proof provided to the public on what TikTok — or China — is doing. However, this second order does appear to be providing a bit more clarity on the situation, as it includes more actionable outcomes, compared to the first order. As a result, what the U.S. now expects (or wants) to happen during the next few weeks and months is clear.
Reading between the lines, it would seem that although the first order left a door open for TikTok to be sold to an American company, the new order is designed to ensure ByteDance walks through that door willingly and completes a sale. Speaking of which, while this would seem like an extension, considering the original order stipulated 45 days, that’s not the case. If anything, the latest order applies more pressure as it not only assumes a sale will take place in the next 45 days, but ByteDance will only have an additional 45 days to divest all of its interests in TikTok and complete the sale. In essence, President Trump has now given ByteDance just ninety days to completely sever any ties it has with TikTok in the United States.
