India Has Banned TikTok Citing National Security Concerns

India has now banned 60 Chinese-owned mobile apps, including TikTok. 

Why India banned TikTok: The Indian government has banned more than 60 Chinese mobile applications. Among them is the popular video sharing site TikTok. India has cited national security concerns following the horrific military confrontation between the two countries earlier this month. 

• India has now banned 60 Chinese-owned mobile apps
• If India banned TikTok it is not the first time
• Nearly one-third of global TikTok users live in India
• India is the largest driver of TikTok downloads
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The conflict has created tensions between the world’s two most populous countries.

Growing hostility

Previously, the protracted rivalry between the two nuclear powers was a Cold War. Armed conflicts are rare.

But two weeks ago, violence erupted on the shared border between China and India. The two countries have been appearing for weeks. Each side increased military presence and exposed arms on the border.

Then on June 16, 2020, Thoreau provoked genuine violence, resulting in 20 Indian soldiers being killed and an unknown number of Chinese casualties. Although India vows retaliation, its economic and military power is comparable to that of China. This week, India launched a conspiracy to undermine the digital power of its neighbors.

Virtual boycott

China’s telecommunications and social networking companies have long viewed India as a prosperous market. About 50 per cent of India’s 1.3 billion citizens have access to the Internet.

In its context of punishing China and crippling its economic power, India has now banned 60 Chinese-owned mobile apps, including TikTok. Nearly one-third of global TikTok users live in India. Other applications that have been discontinued include WeChat, UC Browser, Shareit and Baidu Maps.

But the Indian government is not trying to hurt the Chinese economy. It also addresses national security concerns. The Indian government claims that Chinese applications “steal users’ data and send it indirectly.”

Accordingly, disconnecting Indians from Chinese applications is aimed at protecting their data from misuse of neighbors.

Implications for TikTok after India banned it

This is far from the first time apps like TikTok have faced privacy concerns. If India banned TikTok it is not the first time. The application was unavailable in April 2019 after concerns were raised about court-ordered pornographic content.

The ban was lifted a week later, but according to Reuters, in that short time, TikTok’s parent company, Byte Dance, lost $500,000 every day to ban usage in India.

According to an April report from Sensor Tower, India is the largest driver of TikTok downloads, accounting for 611 million or 30% of the app’s 2 billion total downloads. China, which ranks second to India in terms of downloads, accounts for less than 10% of total installations.

Many TikTok users in India are disconnected because they do not have access to the platform. A TikTok user in New Delhi told the New York Times that the app was “one of the most acceptable sites for embracing different people.”

“There is a ripple effect on the TikTok,” another user told the Times. “Boys from small villages turn into heroes overnight. It changed their lives. Their status in society grew. “

Now, it is unclear whether this ban will be permanent. At present, the Internet Freedom Foundation has called for a ban on the misuse of law, more transparency and the government data that led to the release of this decision.