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India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

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Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#151

Post by president »

OkGoDoIt wrote: post #107

So if WeChat is basically the only messaging app allowed in China, and WeChat is not allowed to be used in India, is there any widely available platform that Indian citizens can use to chat with Chinese citizens? Making it impossible or at least very difficult to communicate with people in another country seems like it’s only going to make any divide even worse in the long term. Think of the fallout of Facebook filte…

Have you ever thought that maybe China shouldn't banned all foreign social media and messaging services in the first place? They literally divided the world by putting up a wall between themselves and the rest of the globe, the Great Firewall. Besides, the divide between China and the rest of the world has already happened on the ideological level.

Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#154

Post by kerkeslager »

baybal2 wrote: post #11

Almost all (except 1) are Chinese made. I'm sure it has absolutely nothing to do with this https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/china-has-intruded-423-metre...

The Sino-Indian border dispute is one of the most frightening things going on right now. Two nuclear superpowers are fighting with "rods and swords"[1], restrained only by, well, restraint. Covid and police violence are bigger issues right now in my opinion, but a nuclear war could get worse than either one quite quickly.

That said, I'm glad to see this not getting much press coverage in the US. The political discourse here has shown a willingness to throw gasoline on any fire, and the last thing we need is our fearless leader weighing in on an already tense and dangerous situation.

[1] https://defencenewsofindia.com/ghatak-and-16-bihar-troops-to...

Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#155

Post by edoo »

saltedonion wrote: post #42

India is absolutely right in banning TikTok as it is a significant national securities threat. As long as the platforms recommendation and ranking algos are a black box, there is no guarantee that China isn’t conducting misinformation campaigns via the platform. At the very least, the government should audit the algos and make sure China can’t arbitrarily alter ranking results.

I also bet the Chinese version of TikTok, if it is even allowed in their country, has a completely different content moderation system. They are more than likely promoting degeneracy in our country while promoting their own ideals at home.

Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#156

Post by ppeetteerr »

Nasrudith wrote: post #140
ppeetteerr wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is the same argument I'm hearing from people who refuse to wear masks. Unfortunately, the freedom of some is a security risk for others. Any government is only as good as the trust people place in it. A trusted government invites trust-worthy candidates, is held to a higher standard of transparency, etc. If you want a government that you can trust, you may want to write to your congress-people and ask, for insta…

No it isn't comparable at all. Mask requirements are far less exploitable for other purposea than censorship. The far out worst case for abuse is considering an uncovered face public nudity.

You would think that mask requirement is far less exploitable but I hear from libertarians that the government is not allowed to do so (granted, this is state government we're talking about).

This conversation we're having is a little moot, however. The US has already banned online communities advertising sex work, despite them being a great resource for workers looking to better filter their clientele.

Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#157

Post by no_wizard »

ianleeclark wrote: post #57
saltedonion wrote: post #42

India is absolutely right in banning TikTok as it is a significant national securities threat. As long as the platforms recommendation and ranking algos are a black box, there is no guarantee that China isn’t conducting misinformation campaigns via the platform. At the very least, the government should audit the algos and make sure China can’t arbitrarily alter ranking results.

Are YouTube algorithms open? I don't really see a difference here. Nation state vs. private corporation is different on paper, but I don't see why. They're both going to react to material stimuli to increase their standings.

Biggest difference is motives, as long as we are making the assumption you mean private corporations that aren’t proxies for their respective government(s)

A private company will optimize profit, all things being equal. Sometimes this means it’s product/platform can be used to disseminate possibly dangerous information, but it also can be regulated in response.

Another government? Not so easy

Only way to really assert influence is through a much more narrow and limited scope like diplomacy, economic sanction, war, or otherwise influence the state/affairs of the country through target regulations like the ones mentioned in the article

Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#158

Post by takeda »

hatenberg wrote: post #145
kumarvvr wrote: post #100

This is a right move, in my view. Chinese infiltration takes a myriad of forms and data collection is one of the biggest. And those apps form a basis for click-of-the-button hacking. And ordinary users will find it very very difficult to determine if an app is Chinese made or not. And the Chinese govt. will have it's fingers in everyone of them, one way or the other. What I do worry now is that since China has been e…

You'll see the same attitude to the US from the rest of the world too

Actually I'm looking forward to it, it would increase pressure to care about privacy or at very least help competition to grow.

Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#159

Post by khuey »

stevewodil wrote: post #150

How does this ban actually get enforced? How are the apps blocked on devices which already have them installed?

Sounds like it'll be a combination of pulling them from the app stores in India and ISPs blocking connections to the relevant server IPs.

Re: India bans TikTok, WeChat, and dozens of other Chinese apps

#160

Post by kumarvvr »

hatenberg wrote: post #145
kumarvvr wrote: post #100

This is a right move, in my view. Chinese infiltration takes a myriad of forms and data collection is one of the biggest. And those apps form a basis for click-of-the-button hacking. And ordinary users will find it very very difficult to determine if an app is Chinese made or not. And the Chinese govt. will have it's fingers in everyone of them, one way or the other. What I do worry now is that since China has been e…

You'll see the same attitude to the US from the rest of the world too

Yes. Especially in South America.

However, US is not about expansionism.

Its about trade and control. It wants markets, trade and resources.

China is about expansionism and lacks moral or ethical compass.

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