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TikTok has announced it is suing Donald Trump's Administration over plans to ban the app in the US.

The US president signed an executive order earlier this month which stopped US businesses from working with TikTok and the messaging app WeChat.

Mr Trump said that the apps, which are Chinese-owned, are a threat to America's "national security, foreign policy and the economy".

In a statement TikTok said: "Today we are filing a complaint in federal court challenging the Administration's efforts to ban TikTok in the US.

"Now is the time for us to act. We do not take suing the government lightly, however we feel we have no choice but to take action to protect our rights, and the rights of our community and employees."

They also said that Trump's order didn't provide: "evidence that TikTok was an actual threat."

TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social platforms in the world, and has been downloaded more than two billion times.

The video-sharing app is used by 80 million Americans every month, and the US is also home to its biggest star, Charli D'Amelio, who has over 75 million followers.

But some, including the president, are concerned that the app, which is owned by Chinese firm ByteDance, is passing on information to the Chinese government.

TikTok says it has never handed over any US data user to Chinese authorities.

If the ban against TikTok is upheld, it would probably mean that Apple and Google would no longer be able to list the app in their stores.

A similar thing happened in the US to another Chinese owned phone company called Huawei.

However with the ban on TikTok set to begin from the 15 September, the app could still be bought by American company Microsoft, which would take over operations in the US, Canada and New Zealand.

TikTok says it has tried to work with Mr Trump's government for nearly a year but the administration pays "no attention to facts".

Chinese firm Tencent. which owns WeChat - the other app facing a ban because of President Trump's executive order - launched its own legal challenge on Friday.

The app is very popular with users who have family in China, where other major social networking platforms - such as WhatsApp and Facebook - are blocked.

"Having it suddenly cut off would be disastrous and frightening for people, especially in the pandemic," said lawyer Michael Bien, who's representing those challenging President Trump's ban.