The WeChat and TikTok app icons are displayed on a smartphone. Picture:BLOOMBERG/ Andrew HarrerWeChat users who download the Chinese app for personal or business communications will not be targeted by President Donald Trump’s executive order that will prohibit using the app for some transactions, the US said.
The US WeChat Users Alliance is seeking a preliminary injunction against Trump’s executive order. A hearing on the request is scheduled for Thursday. On Tuesday a judge denied a request from a TikTok employee to temporarily halt Trump’s order, which bars people in the US from doing business with the social media app and its parent company. The judge ruled the request was premature and that the US has said the order will not interfere with employees’ pay and work at TikTok.
The government’s representation that the commerce department will not target WeChat users does not take away the need for an injunction, the WeChat Users Alliance in responded on Wednesday. In addition, according to the group, if the administration allows individuals to use WeChat for personal and business communications, it undermines the US argument that such use is a national security threat.