Supreme Court Upholds TikTok Ban Under National Security Concerns
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark decision today in TikTok Inc. v. Garland, affirming the constitutionality of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (“the Act”). The ruling, delivered per curiam, has significant implications for social media platforms and national security law, particularly concerning foreign-controlled entities operating in the United States. Case Summary The Act prohibits the operation of foreign adversary-controlled applications in the U.S. without a qualified divestiture. TikTok, owned by China-based ByteDance Ltd., challenged the Act, arguing that it violated the First Amendment rights of the company and its users. Petitioners also contested the Act’s data-collection rationale and divestiture requirements. Supreme Court Ruling The Court held that the Act, as applied to TikTok, does not violate the First Amendment. Key findings include: Intermediate Scrutiny Applied: The Court found that the Act's provisions are content-neutral, aimed at preventing the exploitation of U.S. user data by a foreign adversary, and tailored to address national security concerns. Compelling Government Interest: The Court upheld Congress’s determination that TikTok’s scale and data collection practices pose a significant risk, especially given ByteDance's obligations under Chinese law to cooperate with government intelligence operations. Tailoring of the Law: The Act does not outright…