On January 19, the US government banned TikTok, the most popular short video app in the world. However, an executive order from President Donald Trump delayed the ban in the country by 75 days. Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store had already removed the app, though. So, TikTok started allowing Android device users to sideload it from its website. In the meantime, the unofficial TikTok downloads in the US have surged amid an uncertain future in the country.
TikTok’s uncertain future in the US caused a surge in downloads from unofficial channels
According to a BBC report, TikTok’s uncertain future in the US caused a surge in users downloading it via unofficial channels. Both iPhone and Android device owners are increasingly turning to to install TikTok via sideload. For those unaware, sideloading involves people turning to third-party websites or channels to download TikTok’s installation kit.
One such website, Signulous, told the BBC that 120,000 people used its services to get TikTok onto their iPhones a few days ago. A spokesperson from the company shared screenshots from his dashboard, which showed more than 2,000 iPhone users installing TikTok per hour at times. He told the BBC that “users can only sideload one of the most popular apps in the world in the US, which has led to record traffic to our site and a spike in customers.”
Apart from the third-party platforms, people in the US are also turning to virtual private networks (VPNs) to access TikTok’s services. According to Google’s data, search queries for “VPN” hit an all-time high in the US last month. Furthermore, people have been searching for YouTube guides about how to access TikTok in the US hundreds of thousands of times in the past few weeks.
TikTok is back in the Apple and Google app stores
It’s worth mentioning that the TikTok app is once again available to download in Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store a little more than three weeks after its removal. The app’s comeback is thanks to the executive orders signed by President Trump the day he returned to the White House for his second term.
So, if you want to use TikTok again before the authorities make a final decision regarding its ban in the US in April, you can go through the official app stores. We advise our readers not to use unofficial channels to install TikTok on their devices, as there are security risks in sideloading apps.
2025-02-15 15:07:30