WeChat, the Chinese messaging app that was set to get effectively switched off for American users Sunday night, for now will still be available and operational in the U.S
A group of WeChat users calling themselves the WeChat Alliance, filed a lawsuit last month, arguing that the ban would violate users’ due process and free speech rights. The lawsuit noted that the ban potentially targeted Chinese-Americans, since WeChat is “the primary app Chinese-speakers in the U.S. use to participate in social life by connecting with loved ones, sharing special moments, arguing ideas, receiving up-to-the minute news, and participating in political discussions and advocacy.” The WeChat Alliance is not affiliated with the company in any official capacity.
Beeler’s preliminary injunction also blocked the Commerce Department order that would have banned US transactions on WeChat. And, while the US government has identified “significant” threats to national security, there is “scant little evidence that its effective ban of WeChat for all US users addresses those concerns,” Beeler wrote.
The Commerce Department rule would have prohibited the provision of service “to distribute or maintain the WeChat or TikTok mobile applications, constituent code, or application updates through an online mobile application store in the U.S.” as of Sept. 20.
Specifically relating to WeChat, as of Sunday, the now-stayed order prohibits “any provision of services through the WeChat mobile application for the purpose of transferring funds or processing payments within the U.S.”
