India permanently bans TikTok, 58 other Chinese apps
India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has issued fresh notices to make permanent a ban imposed on video app TikTok and 58 other Chinese apps in June, Reuters said, citing Indian media reports.
When it first imposed the ban, the Indian government gave the 59 apps a chance to explain their position on compliance with privacy and security requirements, the Times of India newspaper reported late on Monday.
The companies, which include ByteDance’s popular video-sharing app TikTok, Tencent Holdings’ WeChat and Alibaba’s UC Browser, were also asked to respond to a list of questions, the daily said.
“The government is not satisfied with the response/explanation given by these companies. Hence, the ban for these 59 apps is permanent now,” business newspaper Livemint quoted a source familiar with the notices as saying. It said the notices were issued last week.
In September, India banned another 118 mobile apps, including Tencent’s popular videogame PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), as it stepped up the pressure on Chinese technology companies following the standoff at the border.