University of Florida: Delete TikTok

Updated on January 18, 2023

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An email to students, faculty, and staff encouraged them to remove TikTok from their devices and indicated that use of the app on campus networks may soon be banned.

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - JANUARY 04: Florida Gators Mascot Albert the Alligator is seen during the second half of a game between the Florida Gators and the Texas A&M Aggies at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center on January 04, 2023 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

Credit: Image Credit: James Gilbert / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images

The University of Florida’s vice president and chief information officer recommended that students, faculty, and staff stop using TikTok and remove the app from their devices.
He also said there’s a “strong possibility” that TikTok will be banned from university devices and networks.
The email marks the latest escalation in a national movement to ban TikTok from government-owned devices and WiFi networks.

The clock is ticking on the use of TikTok at the University of Florida (UF).

Last week, UF Vice President and Chief Information Officer Elias G. Eldayrie sent an email in which he strongly recommended that students, faculty, and staff stop using TikTok and remove the app from their devices. He also said there’s a “strong possibility” that TikTok will be banned from university devices and networks.

Eldayrie’s email was first reported by Gainesville, Fla., ABC affiliate WCJB.

“Prominent experts continue highlighting TikTok as a national security concern, pointing to the possibility that foreign governments may use TikTok to control data collection, influence TikTok’s recommendation algorithm, and compromise personal devices,” Eldayrie said. “In addition, the TikTok U.S. Privacy Policy indicates they ‘may collect biometric identifiers and biometric information … such as faceprints and voiceprints, from your User Content.'”

UF’s threat to ban TikTok marks the latest escalation in a national movement to ban the app from government-run devices and networks because the app is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese tech company that some politicians fear is sharing information with the Chinese government.

In his email, UF’s Eldayrie said that Florida is among 23 states that have taken action against TikTok, and that numerous universities and colleges nationwide are following their state’s actions.

BestColleges reported that the University of Texas at Austin is the latest big public university to ban TikTok from its Wi-Fi networks.

On January 17, the UT Austin technology strategy advisor sent an email to students saying that students will be unable to access TikTok on wired and wireless campus networks. The letter said that UT Austin is taking these steps to comply with Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s directive against TikTok.