TikTok extractor not fetching videos in v1.31.7 (works partially in v1.31.1, but with 403 errors)

[miangee21]

Environment

• OS: Fedora 43 (Linux)
• Installation method: pip (user-level)
• yt-dlp version: 2026.03.03 (latest)
• gallery-dl versions tested:
  • v1.31.7 (latest)
  • v1.31.1 (older)

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Problem Summary

I am experiencing an issue with the TikTok extractor.

When using gallery-dl v1.31.7, TikTok downloads do not start at all. The script finishes execution without errors, but:

• No videos are fetched
• No files are downloaded
• Nothing appears in the terminal output
• Script exits as if successful

However, when I downgrade to v1.31.1, the extractor:

• Successfully fetches videos
• Downloads some of them
• But fails on others with HTTP 403 errors

This suggests that the extractor was at least partially working in 1.31.1, but appears completely broken (silent failure) in 1.31.7.

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Errors in v1.31.1

Example output:

[downloader.ytdl][error] [TikTok] 7597879142901697799: Unable to download webpage: HTTP Error 403: Forbidden (caused by <HTTPError 403: Forbidden>) (1/4) [downloader.ytdl][error] [TikTok] 7597879142901697799: Unable to download webpage: HTTP Error 403: Forbidden (caused by <HTTPError 403: Forbidden>) (2/4) ./gallery-dl/tiktok/roha_khan_official/7597879142901697799 🫶🏻#rohlicious .mp4 ⏳ Sleeping 8s... [downloader.ytdl][error] [TikTok] 7598221263189953800: Unable to download webpage: HTTP Error 403: Forbidden (caused by <HTTPError 403: Forbidden>) (1/4) [downloader.ytdl][error] [TikTok] 7598221263189953800: Unable to download webpage: HTTP Error 403: Forbidden (caused by <HTTPError 403: Forbidden>) (2/4) [downloader.ytdl][error] [TikTok] 7598221263189953800: Unable to download webpage: HTTP Error 403: Forbidden (caused by <HTTPError 403: Forbidden>) (3/4) [downloader.ytdl][error] [TikTok] 7598221263189953800: Unable to download webpage: HTTP Error 403: Forbidden (caused by <HTTPError 403: Forbidden>) (4/4) [download][error] Failed to download 7598221263189953800 Tuhi mere liye ab kr dua! #rohlicious .mp4

These 403 errors were not occurring some weeks ago when everything was working correctly.

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Behavior Comparison

Version	Behavior
1.31.1	Fetches videos, partially downloads, but gets HTTP 403 errors
1.31.7	Does not fetch videos at all, silent success, no output

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Expected Behavior

• Videos should be fetched normally.
• If TikTok is blocking requests, clear errors should be shown.
• The extractor should not silently exit without fetching content.

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Questions

Was there a recent change in the TikTok extractor logic between 1.31.1 and 1.31.7 that could explain:

1. Silent non-fetching behavior?
2. Increased 403 responses?

I can provide you script:

full_downloader.py

Thank you for your work on this project.

[miangee21]

Any update? @mikf