On Thursday, March 30, 2023, at the meeting of the Board of Governors of the State University System of Florida, the governors approved an emergency regulation to accelerate the implementation of proposed Regulation 3.0075, allowing the system’s Chancellor to block access to websites and social media platforms deemed to threaten personal privacy and national security. The emergency regulation follows a national trend to ban TikTok and other high-risk software applications.  

Florida State University is committed to protecting our community against potential cyberthreats. This includes putting safety measures in place to protect our faculty, staff and students’ personal data against any potential threats. As a result, FSU is implementing this statewide emergency regulation and blocking access to the following social media apps, technologies, and websites as of Monday, April 3, 2023. 

• TikTok  
• Tencent QQ 
• WeChat 
• Vkontakte 
• Kaspersky 
• Fizz 

These applications are identified to bring unnecessary risk due to their connection with the foreign governments and are known to collect user’s biometric data such as faceprints and voiceprints from the user’s content. Use of these applications on university-owned devices or university networks will not be allowed, and use of these applications will be blocked from access via personal devices on the university’s wired and wireless networks. 

 

While ITS is consistently working to protect our cyber infrastructure, it requires all members of our community to remain vigilant against potential threats. We will continue to monitor the vendors and products that pose an unnecessary risk and make recommendations to the university on how to protect our assets and everyone’s privacy.  

This message was sent to all students, faculty and staff on Monday, April 4, 2023.  

You can view the proposed committee action that was passed last week by the State University System of Florida Governors in the notice of proposed action.   

EDIT AS OF 02/13/2024: The Department of Management Services (DMS) has officially passed the prohibited applications list established in the section 112.22(1)(f), Florida Statutes. For more information, visit the Prohibited Applications on Government Devices List document. 

While it is not commonly permitted, you may request an exception to this policy.  Learn more about FSU's Request for Exception to IT Security Policies: https://its.fsu.edu/cybersecurity/standards/request-exception-it-security-policy.