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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Can the government block a foreign-owned mobile app from doing business in the US?

By Esther Tsvayg
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YES

The First Amendment likely prevents an outright ban on usage of a foreign-owned app, but the U.S. government can effectively block its distribution and otherwise limit its business operations.

President Trump applied one tool in Aug. 7 executive orders against TikTok and WeChat. The Emergency Economic Powers Act can be used to block transactions between U.S. entities and the apps' China-based owners, effectively thwarting their U.S. business efforts.

The orders take effect in 45 days, allowing time for negotiations already underway about TikTok's fate to continue. A Treasury committee review of TikTok's status in the U.S. had already prompted ByteDance Ltd., the app's owner, to explore a sale of its U.S. assets, possibly to Microsoft Corp. A similar Treasury review led to the sale of Grindr, a dating app for gay men, by its China-based owner.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
White House: Executive order addressing threat posed by TikTok
White House: Executive order addressing threat posed by WeChat
Brookings: Why is Trump Administration banning TikTok and WeChat?
The Verge: How the Trump administration could ‘ban’ TikTok
Foreign Policy: Trump can't ban TikTok, but he can hurt it
NPR: What a President can do under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act
Department of Commerce: What is the entity list?
Cooley: Overview of CFIUS
Bloomberg Law: CFIUS forces sale of Grindr by Chinese owner
CNBC: Microsoft confirms talks to buy TikTok
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.