Dec. 28 (UPI) — TikTok has replaced Google as the Internet’s most popular domain for 2021, according to the cybersecurity company Cloudflare on Tuesday.
TikTok is a video-focused social media site run by the Chinese company ByteDance.
“It was on February 17, 2021, that TikTok got the top spot for a day,” Joao Tome and Sofia Cardita wrote for Cloudfare in a blog post. “Back in March, TikTok got a few more days and also in May, but it was after Aug. 10, that TikTok took the lead on most days.
“There were some days when Google was No. 1, but October and November were mostly TikTok’s days, including on Thanksgiving and Black Friday.”
Facebook sagged from No. 2 to No. 3, followed by Microsoft at No. 4, Apple at No. 5, Amazon at No. 6 and Netflix at No. 7.
YouTube, which is owned by Google’s parent Alphabet, was eighth, Twitter was ninth and WhatsApp tenth. Instagram dropped out of the Top 10 this year.
Cloudfare added that although TikTok is getting more traffic, Facebook still has more worldwide users among social sites.
In 2020, TikTok and ByteDance withstood a pressure campaign by former President Donald Trump’s administration to sell its business in the United States over supposed national security threats.
A federal judge ultimately blocked the White House from banning the TikTok app for U.S. users.