
Prof. Alan Rozenshtein Quoted by Bloomberg About How Businesses Must Follow Law Banning TikTok
Professor Alan Rozenshtein was quoted by Bloomberg about the looming TikTok ban. With less than two weeks to go before the ban kicks in, many influencers are recommending that users change their smartphone settings or get “virtual private networks” to make it appear as though they’re logging in from other countries, like Canada or the U.K., where TikTok is permitted. Others are suggesting “sideloading,” the process of downloading TikTok from outside Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store, or using TikTok on a web browser instead. If the app is banned, companies found violating the law could be subject to heavy fines determined by “multiplying $5,000 by the number of users,” according to the law. In a country where more than half the population is on TikTok — the company claims 170 million monthly users — penalties could quickly climb into the billions. The onus is also notably on those companies, not on “an individual user,” to follow the law. Prof. Rozenshtein said, “It is not illegal to access TikTok” as a citizen, but it will be illegal for businesses such as Apple and Google to offer the TikTok app in the U.S. and for Oracle to provide cloud hosting services.