Biden withdrawing Trump orders that sought to ban WeChat and TikTok

President also orders new commerce department review of security concerns posed by those apps

Joe Biden is withdrawing a series of executive orders that sought to ban new downloads of WeChat and TikTok and ordering a new commerce department review of security concerns posed by those apps, the White House said on Wednesday.

The administration of the previous president, Donald Trump, had attempted to block new users from downloading the apps and ban other technical transactions that Chinese-owned TikTok and WeChat both said would effectively block the apps' use in the US. The courts blocked those orders that never took effect.