Recent rumors and social media speculation suggest Egypt might ban TikTok starting October 2024. Using the circulating hashtag on Facebook, ‘#Ban TikTok in Egypt, people are describing the application as a “disease,” a significant issue within the country, that needs to be “treated” by being banned.
“Eighty percent of TikTok content goes against societal morals and principles, featuring indecency and debauchery,” Head of the House of Representatives’ Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Committee, Ahmed Badawy, stated.
Following a meeting with officials from the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA), Badawy denied the validity of rumors regarding banning TikTok in Egypt. However, as of 10 August, the committee plans to implement new regulations to preserve core values and principles of Egyptian society while addressing ethical violations related to TikTok content, though the specifics of these regulations have not yet been announced and remain unknown.
Opposing Views on The Ban
“This application is a cancer on every phone,” Amani, a 53-year-old woman, told Egyptian Streets. “I have downloaded TikTok myself to see what the fuss is about, and all I found were girls behaving mischievously, young boys acting waywardly, and people hitting new lows to make money. It is degrading and shameful.”
In response to what has been described as “promoting immortality and ruining societal ethics,” scrutiny regarding TikTok’s role and impact within Egyptian society is growing, highlighting the increasing concern over its influence on the nation.
On August 3, Mutaeb, a Facebook user, shared a screenshot from a TikTok live stream showing a woman in mismatched clothing and a niqab, a veil that covers the face, dancing and jumping around in the stream.
In the caption, using the ‘#Ban TikTok in Egypt’ hashtag, Mutaeb wrote, “This isn’t a joke, and it’s not something to laugh about—it’s deeply saddening. TikTok has driven people to madness. The lure of easy money made people take the easy way out. We’re not using technology responsibly at all and we’re acting foolishly as a society.”
Echoing these concerns, Abdel Aziz, a 61-year-old man, shared with Egyptian Streets similar sentiments about the app’s impact, “I feel like this app is making our younger generation lose focus and, worse, become obsessed with fleeting trends rather than building something substantial—studying or doing anything of value.”
He stated that some of the content on TikTok is “just nonsense,” where young people are exposed to all sorts of inappropriate or misleading information with no regulation.
“It’s like letting children wander around without any guidance or supervision.”
A Facebook user named Mohamed posted on 9 August calling for the ban of TikTok in Egypt, saying, “It’s all quite simple.” He wondered why decisions like these are not implemented immediately, given that everyone sees the problem and acknowledges it’s wrong.
However, some people do not see the problem, but like TikTok and see its value. Youssef, a 25-year-old man, told Egyptian Streets, “Not all content on TikTok is sponsored so it’s my go-to app for product reviews, and searching for day-to-day solutions. It’s a good alternative to a Google search when it comes to a meal recipe, how to get a stain out, or even stretch a stiff neck with live demonstration.”
He emphasized the value of learning from real people worldwide, noting that it allows people to experience different cultures without traveling. He acknowledged that while there is so much content, created purely for entertainment, such as trendy dances, cool frame transitions, or short-form storytelling videos, its value exceeds its harm.
Farida, a 40-year-old woman, is against banning TikTok. She told Egyptian Streets, “It’s human nature to do wasteful activities sometimes, and useful activities at other times. So really, any social media application or platform can easily include misleading information, useless, attention-grabbing content, or promote new things that not every society would like.”
She noted that TikTok mirrors human nature by being good, bad, wasteful, and meaningful all at once. To protect the youth, education and awareness must begin at home and in school, to raise strengthen values and raise strong people who are not impressionable or malleable to new trends.
If TikTok were banned, Egypt’s tech-savvy population would likely turn to VPN services to circumvent the restrictions, according to Mohamed Awad, an information technology expert. Rather than imposing a blanket ban on the app, Awad argued that a more efficient and effective approach would be to target and block inappropriate content directly.
Global Trend of Banning TikTok
Many countries have banned TikTok due to concerns about its potential harms, including the risk of data breaches, surveillance of users’ activities, and worry about the negative impact on children and young teenagers who may be exposed to inappropriate content on the platform. The app has been banned either completely, on government-issued mobile devices, or on government-employee devices.
In 2020, India banned TikTok due to concerns about data security. Since then, several countries and government bodies, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, France, and New Zealand, have also barred the app from official devices. In March, Taiwan declared TikTok a national security threat.
Earlier this year, the United States government enacted legislation banning TikTok, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, unless it is sold to a government-approved buyer due to concerns over Chinese access to sensitive user data.
As the world continues to debate TikTok’s role and impact, the conversation highlights the ongoing challenge of balancing technological innovation with cultural preservation.
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