The Albanian authorities ordered, Wednesday, March 12, all the Internet access providers to block Tiktok on Wednesday, for a year, on their territory by March 13. This directive requires the blocking of all IP addresses, DNS servers and other infrastructure linked to Tiktok and its parent company, Bytedance.
The ban was first announced by Prime Minister, Edi Rama, in December, less than a month after the death of a 14 -year -old student during a brawl, near a tirana school, which occurred after a conflict on social networks.
Tiktok's temporary closure results from a consultation of 65,000 parents and teachers and the necessary technical capacity guarantee. However, a dialogue is underway with Tiktok to improve children's safety, including in Albanian language. The opposition criticizes this measure, claiming that it will have an impact on the electoral campaign for the legislative elections of May 11.
Opposition anger
The leader of the opposition, Sali Berisha, accused the Prime Minister of trying to control the information and to block the campaign space of the opposition before the legislative elections and announced a demonstration on March 15.
Tiktok is often accused of undue collection of data, electoral manipulations, and disinformation of disinformation and illegal content, especially among young people. Several countries, such as Pakistan, Nepal or France in New Caledonia, have already banished the application for similar reasons.
Technically, the prohibition can be done by DNS filtering, preventing users from accessing the site by closing the road between the IP address and the domain name. The France-Presse agency and other Fact-Checking organizations are paid by Tiktok to check the videos potentially containing false information. This measure raises questions on the balance between user security and freedom of expression, as well as on the potential impact on electoral campaigns and the dissemination of information.
Source: Lemonde