Govt to continue ban on Chinese apps including TikTok: Report

SOURCE: PTI

The government has sent notices to Chinese apps, including TikTok, that the order to block them will be continued. The notice has been issued by the Ministry of Electronics and IT after reviewing replies of blocked apps, according to a source who did not wish to be identified.

When contacted, TikTok confirmed to have received a reply from the government. “We are evaluating the notice and will respond to it as appropriate. TikTok was among the first companies to comply with the Government of India directive issued on June 29, 2020,” a TikTok spokesperson said.

“We continually strive to comply with local laws and regulations and do our best to address any concerns the government may have. Ensuring the privacy and security of all our users remains to be our topmost priority,” spokesperson further added.

The government had blocked 59 Chinese apps in June and 118 more apps, including PUBG mobile game, in September. The Ministry of Information Technology had blocked the apps under section 69A of the Information Technology Act after learning that the apps are engaged in activities which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.

In a statement, India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology asserted that the applications were “stealing and surreptitiously transmitting users’ data in an unauthorised manner to servers which have locations outside India,” according to the executive order.

The US also issued orders to ban popular Chinese social media apps TikTok and WeChat to safeguard national security, weeks after India banned them, saying they were prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and security of the country.

Trump said that India has banned the use of more than 200 Chinese connected software applications throughout the country.

The United States assessed that a number of Chinese connected software applications automatically capture vast swaths of information from millions of users in the United States, including sensitive personally identifiable information and private information, which would allow the Chinese Army and the Chinese Community Party access to Americans’ personal and proprietary information.

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