🔥 We Delivered 12,000 Videos in 1 Week & We're Sponsoring Rivals to Instagram and TikTok
StickTock.com is a success that breaks through the "Great Firewall of America"
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🤳 StickTock.com Is Still Up & Running, 16K Videos Later
In just one week, StickTock.com served up an incredible 12,000 videos without any downtime — and kept on running as the US government enacted its ban on TikTok. By the time this newsletter hits your inbox, we’ll have passed the 16K mark in videos served up from Iceland instead of either China or the US. While many Americans scrambled this month to find a secure, censorship-free method of accessing TikTok, the PrivacySafe team proved that another way is possible.
Approximately 26,000 anonymous users watched videos — with an average of 1.6 videos watched. That means most users stuck around to watch more than one video, and it’s proof that there is demand for short video content on privacy-respecting platforms. During that time, our small team of dedicated devs fixed bugs and added features, while actively working with the global open-source community to make StickTock’s software easier to deploy on your own server.
But why listen to us hype it up? Check out what the Internet had to say 👇
🌤️ What Sets StickTock.com Apart? StickTock offers a secure, ad-free experience that prioritizes free speech and user privacy. You can watch TikTok videos without downloading an app or loading any code from TikTok’s servers and can even use a Tor .onion hidden service to access the files completely anonymously. This functionality complements our PrivacySafe Social community and our anonymous sharing app PrivacySafe Link as a trustworthy tool in your privacy arsenal.
💡 Why This Matters: TikTok has not only been banned in the US, it has also been blocked or restricted in the past in places like Canada, New Zealand, Syria, Russia, and Hong Kong. These restrictions raise serious questions about government overreach, free speech, and the vulnerability of centralized platforms. StickTock.com didn’t just survive the chaos of the TikTok ban — it thrived, demonstrating that a decentralized, privacy-first platform can handle real-world demand without folding under pressure.
Where others fail, we rise. 🔥
🌍 Another Social World Is Possible
Are you sick of being trapped in networks dominated by the same billionaire faces and voices? Join our social space and connect with millions of international users:
🔆 PrivacySafe Social — A free app with No Ads, No Spyware, No AI Manipulation. We have 8 simple rules and honest, human moderation.
📷 Open Source Instagram & TikTok Replacements Are Gaining Momentum — And We’re a Diamond Sponsor
The teams at Ivy Cyber and PrivacySafe aren’t the only ones building and shipping awesome open source apps. Pixelfed and Loops are the brainchild of Daniel Supernault and an amazing group of devs who are making waves with a new crowdfunding campaign. Pixelfed and Loops are rapidly-growing platforms for sharing photos and videos, offering user experiences that rival Instagram and TikTok. Pixelfed is positioned as a replacement for Instagram and Loops is a more recent effort to challenge TikTok and other short video services.
We believe these apps are making an important and tangible contribution to the open source ecosystem. That’s why PrivacySafe is supporting these apps as one of four Diamond Sponsors — and the fundraiser has already shattered expectations, breaking through the $100K CAD stretch goal in a couple of weeks.
PrivacySafe Social is one of many servers on the decentralized Mastodon network that utilizes the ActivityPub protocol for social sharing, allowing seamless cross-posting with both Pixelfed and Loops. We believe strongly in these interconnected social communities that are free from Big Tech surveillance and intrusive advertising trackers. By supporting each other, we can stand together as an alternative to the crowded, noisy, and locked-down information system that dominates so much of our lives.
As users increasingly flock away from Instagram and TikTok due to concerns over privacy, algorithmic manipulation, and both government and corporate overreach, Pixelfed and Loops are a breath of fresh air. The recent surge in user activity, which may have resulted in Meta's decision to block links to Pixelfed, highlights the growing demand for decentralized solutions. PrivacySafe's sponsorship is one example of our commitment to supporting projects that champion user autonomy, data sovereignty, and ethical digital interactions.
And, hey, maybe we’ll get videos crossing the “TikTok barrier” by linking up StickTock.com and Loops. Anything is possible. 😉
🙏 Thank You For Reading!
Join PrivacySafe Social to keep up with our app releases. We’ve got more public apps fresh out of the oven and you’ll be the first folks who get a taste as we announce them.
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Bits On Tape™ is a twice-weekly replay of science & technology stories by cyber experts. These bits are put to screen by Sean O’Brien, leading voice behind privacy and cybersecurity at Yale Law School and founder of Yale Privacy Lab, and edited by Cherise Labonte, science researcher and licensed Registered Nurse.
© Ivy Cyber Consulting LLC. This project is dedicated to ethical Free and Open Source Software and Open Source Hardware. Ivy Cyber™ and Bits On Tape™ are pending trademarks and PrivacySafe® is a registered trademark. All content, unless otherwise noted, is licensed Creative Commons BY-SA 4.0 International. Header photo includes screenshots of TikTok videos shared by TheRxckStxr.