If TikTok does go down for Americans on Sunday, they may have found a tool to continue accessing the popular social app: a VPN.
The China-owned app will be removed from mobile app stores and networks for U.S. users on Sunday as a law signed by President Joe Biden in April 2024 requires the app to be sold to qualified buyers by a deadline. Delete on.
Barring a last-minute sale or a reprieve from the Supreme Court, the app will almost certainly disappear from the app stores for iPhone and Android phones. It won't be deleted from people's phones, but the app may stop working.
TikTok plans to shut down service to Americans on Sunday, meaning even those who have downloaded the app will no longer be able to use it, Reuters and The Information reported this week. apple and Google There was no comment on their plans to remove the apps from the App Store on Sunday.
"Basically, an app or website can check where the user is coming from," said Justas Palekas, product director at proxy service IProyal.com. "Based on that, they can impose restrictions based on their location."
Block your physical internet access point
This will likely block most users, but for particularly motivated Americans, using a VPN may allow them to continue using the app.
VPNs and a related business-to-business technology called proxies work by tunneling a user's internet traffic through a server in another country, making it appear that the user is accessing the internet from a different location than where they actually are.
This works because every time a computer connects to the Internet, it is identified by its IP number, which is a 12-digit number that is different for each computer. The first six digits of this number identify the network, which also includes information about the physical area from which the request came.
In China, people have used VPNs for years to get around the country's Great Firewall, which blocks U.S. websites like Google and Facebook. After India banned TikTok in 2020, VPN traffic surged, with people often using VPNs to watch sporting events in countries where official broadcasts are unavailable.
According to lobbying group VPN Trust Initiative, the VPN market will be worth nearly $38 billion by 2022.
"We've always seen significant increases in VPN demand when access to online platforms is restricted, and this situation is no exception," said Lauren Hendry Parsons, privacy advocate at ExpressVPN. ExpressVPN is a VPN provider that costs $5 per month.
ProtonVPN posted on social media earlier this week: "We are not here to support TikTok, but the impending US ban highlights the importance of VPNs - millions of people rely on them to stay safe, private and unrestricted Access the Internet ” ProtonVPN offers service for $10 per month.
VPN price
Both ExpressVPN and ProtonVPN allow users to set their internet access location.
Most VPN services charge a monthly fee to cover server and traffic costs, but some use a business model that collects user data or traffic trends, such as Meta, which offers a free VPN so it can keep an eye on rival apps as they grow rapidly.
A key trade-off for people using a VPN is speed, since requests must go through a middle-man computer to mask the user's physical location.
While VPNs have worked in the past when governments banned apps, that doesn't ensure they will work when TikTok shuts down. Parsons told CNBC in an email that it was unclear whether ExpressVPN would be able to access TikTok before the ban was implemented. It's also possible TikTok will be able to identify Americans trying to access the app using a VPN.
(Left) Sarah Baus of Charleston, South Carolina, with fellow content creators Sallye Miley of Jackson, Mississippi, and Carly Goode of Columbia, South Carolina Callie Goodwin stood outside the U.S. Supreme Court building with "Keep TikTok" written on her hand. Oral arguments will be heard in Washington, D.C., on January 10, 2025, on whether to overturn or delay a law that could result in TikTok being banned in the United States.
Andrew Harnick | Getty Images
VPNs and proxies used to circumvent regional restrictions have been part of the internet landscape for decades, but their use is increasing as governments try to ban certain services or apps.
Apps are always removed at the request of the government. Apple said that in 2023, nearly 1,500 apps were removed in various regions due to government removal requests, with more than 1,000 of them located in China. Most of these are fringe apps that violate anti-gambling laws or Chinese video gaming rules, but a growing number of countries are banning apps for national security or economic development reasons.
Now, the United States is poised to ban one of the country's most popular apps — which has 115 million users and is the second most downloaded app on iOS and Android in 2024, according to estimates provided to CNBC by Sensor Tower. Market intelligence company.
“As we witness increasing attempts to divide and censor the internet, the role of VPNs in safeguarding internet freedom becomes increasingly important,” Parsons said.
watch: TikTok alternatives surge in China
