NDSU computer science assistant professor and Challey Institute faculty fellow Jeremy Straub was featured on NBC’s National NBCLX news program Sept 18. Straub was interviewed about the impact and security considerations of the pending federal ban on TikTok and WeChat.

NBCLX is a news program with a targeted audience of millennials and generation Z viewers. According to the network, it reaches 32 million households and is available in all of the top 25 television markets.

During the interview, Straub discussed the technical and national security considerations of the ban. He also discussed how the differences between the two orders would impact users of the two popular smartphone applications differently and the ban’s economic and political impact.

“TikTok and WeChat are very popular phone applications. TikTok, in particular, is very popular with high school and college-age students,” said Straub. “Not only did the NBCLX interview provide an opportunity to raise interest in national policy among students in the viewing audience, it also was an excellent opportunity to introduce NDSU to potential future students.”

Straub has been conducting research on the policy implications of cybersecurity as part of his Challey Institute faculty fellowship. He has conducted past research on the impact of influence campaigns, cyberattacks and deceptive news content. A current focus for Straub is the impact of technology regulation laws on innovation decision making.

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