India Bans 54 More Chinese Apps That Threaten Security

The ministry of electronics and information technology have banned 54 Chinese apps that pose threat to the India's security.

On 14th February 2022, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology India banned 54 Chinese apps that pose a threat to the country's security. The ministry in a statement said, "These 54 apps allegedly obtain various critical permissions and collect important from userers. These collected data are being misused and transmitted to servers located in China.” The list of banned apps include - Sweet Selfie HD, Beauty Camera - Selfie Camera, Viva Video Editor, Tencent Xriver, Onmyoji Arena, AppLock and Dual Space Lite. Interestingly, it also includes Garena Free Fire Illuminate, which is a battle royale game owned by Singapore-based company named Sea Ltd. This is not the first time India is banning Chinese Apps. Earlier too, India has banned several Chinese apps. The first round of bans was announced in June 2020, days after 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a clash with Chinese troops at Galwan Valley in Ladakh on 15th June 2020. 

In June last year, India banned 59 Chinese mobile applications including the widely-used social media platforms such as TikTok, WeChat, and Helo citing a threat to the nation's sovereignty and security.

India has blocked a total 321 apps since border tensions with China in May - June 2020.

Correction: on 14th February 2022, India banned 54 Chinese Apps. Last year in June 2021, India had banned 59 Chinese Apps. 

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