University of Florida recommends its students and employees stop using TikTok

In this way, the public institution joins about twenty states, many of them with conservative governments, that have taken action against this popular application

Miami – The University of Florida (UF) suggested to its students, faculty and administrative staff to stop using the TikTok application due to “national security concerns” around it, according to local media reports this Friday.

The Florida public institution sent an email on Thursday noting that some experts have warned that foreign governments could be using the application to collect data, “influence TikTok’s recommendation algorithm and compromise personal devices.”

“TikTok’s Privacy Policy in the United States indicates that ‘they may collect biometric identifiers and biometric information such as facial and voice prints, from user content,'” added the university, which indicated that they are studying the steps to be taken in the future. .

“We strongly recommend that everyone stop using TikTok and delete the application from their devices ,” emphasized the public university, located in Gainesville, a city in Alachua County, north Florida.

In this way, the UF joins several institutions and states, many of them with conservative governments, that have taken action against this popular application.

Last month, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, signed an executive order banning the download and use on the devices they use for work of the TikTok and WeChat apps, which are owned by Chinese companies ByteDance or Tencent.

Some twenty states, including Texas, Alabama or Tennessee, have already done the same, while also in December the US Congress approved a rule that prohibits TikTok on official federal government devices.