FILE – This Feb. 25, 2020, file photo, shows the icon for TikTok in New York. TikTok asked a judge to block the Trump Administration’s attempt to ban its app, suggesting the Chinese-owned app’s deal with Oracle and Walmart remains unsettled. An app-store ban, delayed once by the government, is set to go into effect Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020. (AP Photo/File)
WASHINGTON, D.C. , United States – A US federal judge late Sunday halted a politically charged ban ordered by the Trump administration on downloads of the popular video app TikTok, hours before was to go into effect.
District Judge Carl Nichols issued a temporary injunction at the request of TikTok, which the White House has called a national security threat alleging that its Chinese parent firm is tied to the Beijing government.
The opinion was sealed, so no reason for the decision was released in a one-page order by the court in Washington.
The Trump administration order sought to ban new downloads of the app from midnight (0400 GMT Monday) but would allow use of TikTok until November 12, when all usage would be blocked.
The judge denied TikTok’s request to suspend the November 12 ban.