Chinese Apps Ban in India: Implications, Alternatives, and More

Chinese Apps Ban in India: Implications, Alternatives, and More
The Indian government last night announced a ban on 59 different mobile apps with a Chinese connection to counter the threat to the "sovereignty and security" of the country. These apps include popular apps like Tik Tok, Likee, Helo, Cam Scanner, Xender, Parallel Space, ES File Explorer, Mi Video Call, Mi Community, UC Browser and more. The government has also said that few of these apps steal and illegally store user data on servers outside of India. Taking these privacy concerns into account and amid the bowling temperatures along the Indochinese borders, the government has ordered these apps to be blocked with immediate effect. The list of these applications:

Will existing applications stop working?

The government has requested that the apps be removed from app repositories like the Android Play Store and Apple App Store. Therefore, in accordance with local rules and regulations, Apple and Google will make these apps unavailable in their respective app stores. At the time of the report, Tik Tok had already been removed from both the Play Store and the App Store on iOS. While others like WeChat etc. are still available for download, soon they won't be available for Indian users either. Although government directives use the term "prohibit the use of certain applications, used on mobile and non-mobile Internet-enabled devices", it means that applications that are already installed on the devices may remain, however, once uninstalled, it is possible that you can't reinstall them.

(Image credit: Techradar)

Should I uninstall these apps from my phone?

It is not illegal to have these apps on the phone, however ISPs including cellular carriers have also been instructed to stop traffic to and from these apps. So after some time these apps won't even work on your device and just take up space on the phone. In addition, some companies of Chinese origin use applications such as QQ Mail or WeChat for official communication. Your employees in India may be forced to find another way to communicate. Similarly, some apps belonging to Xiaomi are also on the list. These apps will no longer work and the company will have to find other ways to communicate with the community. We have contacted Xiaomi for an official update and will update this section once we get clarification.

What about the application data?

The government directive does not mean that the apps will remove your accounts from their servers. If the regulations are relaxed, you can still regain access to your content. However, it all depends on the duration of the ban. Some platforms are purging data from user accounts due to a long period of inactivity, which means you will lose all your subscribers and content and may need to re-create the account again. Since the announcement of the ban, the influencers and content creators on TikTok have updated their profiles and command their fans and subscribers to follow them on other platforms like Instagram, Twitter or Facebook etc. Apart from social media apps, there are also some eCommerce apps on the list. If you have made a purchase or if a product has already been shipped, you can contact them via email in the event of a request or dispute.

When will the applications return?

Although users are urging to block popular apps like TikTok, it is up to the Indian government to lift the ban. Companies like TikTok, which will suffer the greatest impact as a result of this ban, have been invited by "government stakeholders for an opportunity to respond and provide clarification." However, if we are to go by the ongoing border fighting and rising anti-Chinese sentiment in public and government districts, it is unlikely that the ban will be eased anytime soon.

(Image credit: Shutterstock)

Are these apps really stealing data?

Several apps on this list have been implicated in incidents involving the security of user data. TikTok in particular has had numerous run-ins with the national government. It was blocked last year for sending semi-pornographic content and had to go through a litigation process before returning to app stores. Just a few days ago, it was discovered that TikTok was busy copying data from iPhones clipboard. Although most users do not store personal information on the clipboard of a smartphone, Tik Tok is also not supposed to access it without the user's permission. By the way, more than 53 other apps have been found to access clipboard data on iOS. At the moment, there is no information about its access to information on the clipboard of Android-based smartphones. Last October, questions were raised about the amount of data collected by Tik Tok. It was later prosecuted in the United States for collecting user data and sending it back to Chinese servers. Similarly, CamScanner distributed malware on Android smartphones. This malware could steal your personal information, the images you have scanned and send to offshore servers. Similar incidents have been reported for many other apps. While these incidents may not affect all users, however, it is Chinese government policy that forces these companies to share data upon request, making these apps and your smartphone a spy device. remotely in real time.

What are the best alternatives to these applications?

TikTok, Helo, Bigo Live, Vigo Video, VMate, and Kwai are different social media platforms that allow users to upload short videos, pranks, and other content. Several of these applications can be used to replace these applications of Chinese origin. Some of these applications are Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Local solutions like Mitron and Chingaari are also on the rise. UCBrowser, DU Browser, CM Browser and APUS Browser are browsers that help you browse the Internet. Much better options, Google Chrome, Brave, Opera, Firefox and Safari browsers are available depending on the mobile you are using. These browsers are not only stable, secure, and feature-rich, but some come with additional features to keep your data safe from prying eyes. Camscanner allows users to scan their images and text documents and convert them to PDF files on the go. Adobe Scan is the perfect replacement for this. It is free and offers all the features like OCR, scanning and more that Camscanner offers. SHAREit and Xender which help you quickly transfer data between different devices like smartphone or computer, can be easily replaced by apps like Google Files, SuperBeam, ShareAll, Nearby Sharing and Send Anywhere etc. These apps not only make data transfer easy but also offer additional features like encryption and also help you remove unwanted files. WeChat is a normal chat platform and can be easily replaced by WhatsApp or Telegram. Both are feature-rich and powerful standalone chat platforms. Most of the contacts in your contact list would use one of two apps, so switching from WeChat to Telegrams or WhatsApp shouldn't be a problem. Club Factory and Shein are Chinese e-commerce platforms that may be replaced by Flipkart, Myntra, Ajio, Amazon, etc. In addition to being able to shop for clothes, you'll get quality customer service, faster delivery, and complaint settlement as well. UCNews, NewsDog, etc. are news aggregators that can be replaced by Inshorts and DailyHunt. You can read about 5 Indian apps that we think can make the most of this ban here.

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