In the wake of similar actions around the state and country, TikTok is being blocked on university Wi-Fi and on-campus housing at Auburn University. The school has also asked employees not to install the app on any technology issued by the college.
Auburn has an official account on the app, however nothing has been posted since Dec. 2. The account is used for promoting athletics and is involved with influencer accounts all over Alabama.
There has not been an answer on how the ban will affect the athletic department and the influencer accounts that help promote the university.
Auburn is not the only entity in the state that will be putting in place a TikTok ban on its devices and networks. Gov. Kay Ivey has banned the use of the app on government networks as well as on devices issued by the state.
The only time the app can be used, according to the state, is for “essential government uses.” Ivey’s ban is directed toward the state’s government executive branch agencies in particular.
Ivey has called the plan to ban the app a “no-brainer.”
“I want to make sure I’m doing everything we can as a state to stand against this growing security risk,” she said.
Auburn and the state have not been the only places to issue bans for TikTok on certain networks. Recently, Maryland, South Carolina, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Utah all enacted TikTok bans of their own.
The University of Alabama, University of North Alabama, and University of South Alabama did not respond to a Yellowhammer News inquiry regarding the use of TikTok on their campuses.
Austen Shipley is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News.
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