The University of Houston announced on Monday that TikTok will be banned on the school’s network starting in the new year.
Starting on Jan. 3, 2025, the school will “begin blocking” the Chinese-owned video-sharing platform in addition to other prohibited technologies and applications in accordance with an executive order by Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX).
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In the school’s announcement, it cited Abbott’s December 2022 executive order on the matter and “further clarification” provided by the July 2023 Texas Government Code 620.
Code 620 directed the Texas Department of Information Resources to develop a model policy, which it released on Nov. 20.
The decision to ban TikTok on school networks came two days before the Supreme Court agreed to hear the platform’s legal challenge against a law that passed in April requiring its CCP-tied parent company ByteDance to sell to a U.S. owner or shut down entirely.
ByteDance argues that the law violates the First Amendment.
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After Abbott’s executive order, Texas university employees were banned from using TikTok on school-owned and operated devices, including at the University of Houston. The new policy extends to anyone on the school’s Wi-Fi network.
Other programs that will be banned starting in January include Kaspersky, a Russian antivirus software, WeChat, a Chinese messaging application, and other foreign-owned platforms. Hardware and equipment from some foreign-owned companies will also be prohibited, including Chinese-owned Huawei Technologies, ZTE Corporation, and Dahua Technology.
Many other schools outside of Texas have also banned TikTok from their networks or school-owned devices, including Clemson University, Auburn University, and the University of Oklahoma.
During a press conference on the same day UH announced its ban, President-elect Donald Trump said he would “take a look at TikTok” in light of the looming national ban. He met with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Monday.
Trump said he has a “warm spot in my heart for TikTok” because of how much support he received among young voters.
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“There are those that say that TikTok has something to do with that,” Trump added. “TikTok had an impact.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to the University of Houston for comment.
This article was originally published at www.washingtonexaminer.com
