Montana was the first state in the nation to ban TikTok

Helena, MT. – On April 24th, Governor Greg Gianforte issued the following statement after legislation was signed into law forcing TikTok to cease operations in the United States unless it divests from its Chinese Communist Party-linked owner, ByteDance:

“Congress, with overwhelming bipartisan support, did right by the American people by requiring TikTok to divest from ByteDance and the Chinese Communist Party. China has used TikTok to spy on Americans, violate their privacy, and collect their personal, private, and sensitive information. That’s why Montana was the first state in the nation to protect Montanans by banning the app. Montana has been the national leader on protecting our citizens from foreign adversaries who are trying to spy on them and steal their personal data.”

To protect Montanans’ personal, private, and sensitive data and information from intelligence gathering by the Chinese Communist Party, the governor signed Senate Bill 419 in 2023, making Montana the first state in the nation to ban TikTok and prohibit mobile application stores from offering TikTok within the state.

The governor previously directed the state’s chief information officer and executive agency directors to prohibit the use of all social media applications tied to foreign adversaries on state equipment and for state business in Montana.