India permanently bans 59 Chinese apps, including TikTok: Report
India has permanently banned 59 Chinese apps which were among those censured by the central government last year over security issues, reported The Times of India on Monday, adding that these apps might include TikTok and Club Factory.
India has permanently banned 59 Chinese apps which were among those censured by the central government last year over security issues, reported The Times of India on Monday, adding that these apps might include TikTok and Club Factory.
The 59 banned apps are also believed to include Baidu, WeChat, Alibaba’s UC Browser, Mi Video Call, BIGO Live, SHAREit, Likee, and Weibo.
The Indian government had on June 29 banned 59 Chinese apps terming them prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and defence of India. The ban move earned the moniker of “digital strike” in view of the mid-June clashes between Indian and Chinese troops in Ladakh.
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The IT ministry had served a notice to the 59 banned apps, stating the ban was “interim in nature.” It had also asked them to furnish explanations regarding their operations in India, data collection, information processing practices, and “unauthorised data access” by them.
The permanent ban followed as the ministry officials were not satisfied with the responses of the companies to queries raised regarding data security and privacy. The permanent ban notices were served last week on an individual basis, the report further said.
In September, in a fresh wave of restrictions, 118 more Chinese apps, including Tencent’s popular gaming app PUBG Mobile, were imposed a ban on. A government statement said the move was necessitated to protect country’s sovereignty and integrity.
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