China-affiliated artificial intelligence and social media platforms are no longer accessible on Texas Tech campus Wi-Fi and devices after Gov. Greg Abbott issued a statewide ban of the apps last Friday.
Accounts created for university-related use on the platforms must be deactivated, and Tech employees are required to stop using the apps on Tech-issued devices, according to an email from Lin Zhou, Tech’s CIO and vice president for Information Technology, on Wednesday morning.
In his Friday proclamation, Gov. Abbott stated the apps RedNote and Lemon8 “pose a security risk to the United States” and “collect significant amounts of user data.”
The six apps were added to the Texas Department of Information Resources Prohibited Technologies list, the entirety of which can be found on the DIR website.
Prohibited apps include the following, according to the email:
- RedNote
- DeepSeek
- Webull
- Tiger Brokers
- Moomoo
- Lemon8
Gov. Abbott issued a similar ban on Dec. 7, 2022, which required state agencies to ban the China-based TikTok on state-owned and -issued devices, including phones, computers and tablets. Tech quickly followed suit and banned the app on university Wi-Fi and devices.
The announcement does not affect the apps’ accessibility on non-Tech devices, according to Tech’s IT Division website.
