TikTok

Every self-respecting app has a dark mode, so why should TikTok be any different? Especially given that it's the sort of app you could end up scrolling through endlessly at 2 a.m. in the morning. Any respite from that blinding white interface is likely to be welcomed by your poor bleary eyes, which is why it's always a good idea to turn on TikTok's Dark mode. That said, it's worth noting ...

United States Senator Michael Bennet today penned a letter to the chief executives of Apple and Google demanding that they ban Chinese-owned TikTok from their app stores on national security grounds (via The New York Times). Bennet, a Democrat of Colorado and member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, sent the letter to Apple's Tim Cook and Google's Sundar Pichai, saying that no company...

TikTok's custom in-app browser on iOS reportedly injects JavaScript code into external websites that allows TikTok to monitor "all keyboard inputs and taps" while a user is interacting with a given website, according to security researcher Felix Krause, but TikTok has reportedly denied that the code is used for malicious reasons. Krause said TikTok's in-app browser "subscribes" to all...

No, Apple is not giving away free AirPods, despite what you may be seeing on your TikTok "For You" page. In the last several weeks, hundreds of videos have spawned on TikTok claiming that Apple is giving away free AirPods replacement as long as you simply walk into an Apple Store and ask for a new free pair. The trend implies that "AirPods" users can walk into an ‌Apple Store‌, claim their...

TikTok has announced new content moderation tools for the short-form video platform to make it safer for children, along with new hashtag filters for its For You and Following feeds. The first version of its new system to restrict certain types of content from being viewed by teens is called "Content Levels," which is due to launch in the next few weeks. While adult content is banned on...

TikTok is working on a plan to better safeguard the data of its U.S. users, the company said in an open letter [PDF] to several U.S. Senators that have expressed concern that the China-based app is a national security risk. Shared by The New York Times, the letter outlines a multi-pronged undertaking called "Project Texas," aimed at strengthening data security. TikTok says that 100 percent...

The Federal Communications Commission has asked Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores because of its "pattern of surreptitious data practices," reports TechCrunch. FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr is said to have written to Apple and Google on Tuesday to make the request, which comes after a BuzzFeed News report last week claimed TikTok staff in China have had access to U.S....

TikTok is rolling out the ability for users to upload videos that are up to 10 minutes long, an increase from the previous 3-minute time limit imposed on the app, the company has confirmed to TechCrunch. TikTok has been testing out the feature for several months and is now slowly rolling it out to all users. TikTok has had a history of increasing the maximum time length for videos on the app ...

TikTok has become the first non-Facebook app to reach three billion downloads worldwide across iOS and Android, according to Sensor Tower. Sensor Tower Store Intelligence data reveals that the app, including its Chinese iOS version called Douyin, was the most downloaded and highest-grossing non-game app globally in the first half of 2021, reaching 383 million first-time installs and an...

TikTok on Tuesday was targeted by EU consumer protection groups for allegedly violating the bloc's consumer laws and for failing to protect children from hidden advertising and inappropriate content (via Reuters). The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) lodged a complaint against the short video-sharing app with the European Commission, citing several issues in its complaint, one of which...

TikTok has launched its first augmented reality effect to make use of the LiDAR technology present in iPhone 12 Pro devices (via TechCrunch). To ring in 2021 we released our first AR effect on the new iPhone 12 Pro, using LiDAR technology which allows us to create effects that interact with your environment - visually bridging the digital and physical worlds. We're excited to develop more ...

The Department of Justice this week formally appealed a judge's order that blocks restrictions on TikTok by the U.S. government, according to a new court filing, in a continuation of the Trump administration's campaign against the short-form video sharing platform (via CNN). Earlier this month, U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols issued an order blocking the Department of Commerce's...

Apple is offering TikTok users a four-month free trial of Apple Music to newcomers of the streaming service. As spotted by ApplePost and Apple Terminal, the deal is available to new subscribers through the short-form video sharing app, and offers an additional month on top of Apple's normal three-month free trial for new subscribers. The promotion runs through January 4, 2021, and the...

A federal judge on Monday blocked the Trump administration's attempt to ban new downloads of TikTok in the United States, the latest defeat in the White House's efforts to outlaw the app in the country (via TechCrunch). President Trump in August signed an executive order that would officially ban any U.S. transactions with TikTok if its Chinese parent ByteDance did not reach a deal to divest ...

ByteDance's deadline to divest itself of social media app TikTok has elapsed, but talks are set to continue with the U.S. government about a sale without another deadline extension, according to reports. Last month, ByteDance was granted a seven-day extension on an order from the Trump administration to sell the short-form video sharing platform. The deadline passed on December 5, but...

TikTok owner ByteDance has been granted a seven-day extension on an order from the Trump Administration to sell the short-form video sharing platform (via Reuters). The administration had previously granted ByteDance a 15-day extension of the order issued in August, which was set to expire Friday. President Trump on August 14 directed ByteDance to divest the app within 90 days. According...

A federal judge on Sunday granted TikTok a preliminary injunction that temporarily halts an order from the Trump Administration that would have banned new app downloads in the United States beginning on Monday, reports The New York Times. Should the order have gone into effect, Apple and Google could have been forced to remove TikTok from their respective app stores, and users who already...

Just hours before new app downloads would be banned in the United States, Vanessa Pappas, the interim head of TikTok, announced on Saturday that the company has reached a proposal with Oracle and Walmart that will keep the video sharing platform alive in the country. The deal has also been approved by President Donald Trump, reports Bloomberg. The deal will effectively establish a new...

The U.S. Commerce Department is moving to ban downloads of TikTok and WeChat within the United States from this Sunday (via Reuters). The U.S. Commerce Department plans to issue an order today that will "deplatform" WeChat and TikTok by banning people in the United States from downloading the apps. The order will take effect from Sunday, September 20. U.S. government officials speaking...

Amid reports Monday morning that Oracle has won the battle with Microsoft to acquire TikTok's U.S. operations, China's state-run English TV channel is claiming that no sale with any U.S. buyer will go ahead (via Reuters). ByteDance will not sell TikTok's U.S. operations to Oracle Corp ORCL.N or Microsoft Corp MSFT.O and will not give the source code for the video platform to any U.S. buyers,...

Oracle has expressed serious interest in acquiring TikTok, according to the Financial Times. Oracle reportedly has already held preliminary talks with TikTok's China-based parent company, Bytedance, to explore the terms of an acquisition. Oracle is also believed to be working with venture capital firms including General Atlantic and Sequoia Capital to raise funds for a bid. Serious...