The Indian Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has once again banned 47 Chinese apps. This is in addition to the 59 Chinese apps banned in the country towards the end of June citing national interest and security. The 47 Chinese apps are mainly operating as clones of the previously banned 59 Chinese apps and include TiokTok Lite, CamScanner Lite, and much more. DD News took to the official Twitter handle and revealed the information about the ban of the 59 Chinese apps. The Government is yet to reveal the full list of the apps. There are reports that PUBG will also be on the list of the 47 Chinese apps.
Govt. bans 47 such apps which are clones of those #apps that have already been banned earlier pic.twitter.com/2tRBkAvfht
— DD News (@DDNewslive) July 27, 2020
Meanwhile, the Government of India is reportedly gearing up for a large scale digital strike with the possible ban of over 275 Chinese apps. The list includes popular apps like PUBG, AliExpress, and much more. In June, the Government had banned over 59 popular mobile apps such as TikTok due to national security violations.
As of this writing, the Government is yet to ban 275 Chinese apps in India but the list is on the radar of the law enforcement agencies. These apps could be axed if the Government found a violation of national security and user privacy. The ministry officials have red-flagged the apps due to security concerns, which some apps are listed since they violate data sharing principles.
The reports suggest that officials are not only looking for Chinese apps but also those apps that have significant investments from China. There are reports that the USA is also considering banning of Chinese apps like TikTok because they share information with the Chinese Government.
In addition to PUBG, the list also includes Zili, AliExpress, Resso, ULike, and much more. You should note that AliExpress is one of the most popular shopping destinations for Indian tech enthusiasts. We also purchased several items for cheap prices from AliExpress. Moreover, the reports indicated that there are over 14 Mi apps on the list including Capcut and FaceU.
The list also includes apps such as LBE Tech, Perfect Corp, Netease Games, Yoozoo Global, Sina Corp, and Meitu. The apps developed by Supercell are also on the list of 250 Chinese apps since the company is backed by Chinese technology companies. Moreover, India has also decided to avoid Huawei from the 5G implementation.
The IT Ministry is currently drafting rules to define the core framework for apps. The apps that violate the provisions will be banned. The main reason for the move is to protect the data of Indian citizens and also to boost cybersecurity.
China is under fire from all major countries over the way they handled the COVID-19 outbreak and its association with WHO. Even though WHO had sent a team to China to study the spread of COVID-19, the local administration had created a flood-like atmosphere by opening various dams. The latest to join the party is the list of 47 Chinese apps. We will reveal the list as and when it’s available in the public domain.
