In yet another update on the TikTok ban saga, a judge blocked the White House’s ban on the Chinese-owned app that has been experiencing so much push back from the current administration. 

Only hours before the administration’s ban was set to take effect, a judge in Washington D.C. blocked the ban from taking effect last Sunday evening. This order was the first step towards banning TikTok fully from the US.

The executive order would’ve required Apple and Google to remove the service entirely from their app stores, preventing any new user from downloading it, but would’ve allowed current users to continue having access to the app. This act is akin to shadow-banning, an algorithm glitch in Instagram that stops certain accounts from appearing on the home page and explore page of users.  

Judge Nichols declined, for the time being, to block a second set of restrictions requested by the Department of Commerce, which are set to take effect on November 12. 

We are all a little pleased with the judge’s order to stop the ban from happening, especially with the new feature that was rolled out on September 29 that aids in spreading information and a manual guide for U.S. voters.