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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

#31

Post by agilebyte »

chrisco255 wrote: post #25
cm2187 wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Overnight, I agree. But I think the decoupling will happen. The outsourcing to China took about 10 years (mid 90s to mid 2000s). It will likely not take a lot longer to decouple. 10y is very rapid.

We in the U.S. should have partnered more closely with India in the first place. India is democratic and hold values closer to our own. The CCP not so much.

More democratic than China, yes. A low bar to clear.

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

#34

Post by Avamander »

saltedonion wrote: post #27
Barrin92 wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

banning the usage of WeChat for public officials or national defense companies and so on would make some sense, I fail to see however how TikTok is a security threat. It's just a response to the clash over the border and nothing else, and not really a particularly effective one at that.

Tiktok can be a huge threat because their recommendation algorithms are black box. This makes them capable of controlling how potentially dangerous information is disseminated in the United States, including topics influencing elections.

They have demonstrated their capabilities by their censorship of certain types of people. It's not "it could be a threat" it currently is.

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

#35

Post by glaive123 »

Barrin92 wrote: post #5
president wrote: post #2

Glad to see India understanding the threat to national security posed by these apps. I would like to see the US do the same.

banning the usage of WeChat for public officials or national defense companies and so on would make some sense, I fail to see however how TikTok is a security threat. It's just a response to the clash over the border and nothing else, and not really a particularly effective one at that.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23634138

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

#36

Post by SoulMan »

Interestingly even before this ban, there has been a movement (at least by armchair critics in Social Media) to uninstall Chinese apps. People started installing this unknown app "Remove china apps" to get rid of the apps that Chinese phone makers like Xiomi does not let you remove.

People started removing Chinese apps not because of national security but because they thought it would stop boosting Chinese economy which in turn will come as defense budget

Bigger question is how do you stop the market penetration of mobiles like Oppo/Vivo/Xiomi etc and all the Startups like Ola/Flipkart which is backed by Chinese investment.

https://www.indiatvnews.com/technology/news-remove-china-app...

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

#37

Post by kahlonel »

markovbot wrote: post #3
president wrote: post #2

Glad to see India understanding the threat to national security posed by these apps. I would like to see the US do the same.

I would find it very problematic if the US government attempted to interfere with it's citizens downloading whatever software they want. I absolutely do not trust the US government to be the arbitrator of what app's are "safe".

Problematic for whom? The average citizen doesn't realize the threats and has no idea of safe/unsafe, so there must be someone to decide for them. People who are aware of threats, and are willing to accept the risks can surely find their way around the bans.

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

#38

Post by nostromo »

markovbot wrote: post #3
president wrote: post #2

Glad to see India understanding the threat to national security posed by these apps. I would like to see the US do the same.

I would find it very problematic if the US government attempted to interfere with it's citizens downloading whatever software they want. I absolutely do not trust the US government to be the arbitrator of what app's are "safe".

The US however could enact privacy laws, which could force TikTok into compliance.

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

#40

Post by amrrs »

Covid cases are on rise in India. Government didn't handle lockdown well to accommodate guest (migrant) workers and they were stranded. On top of all these, lives of Indian soldiers died recently in a clash with Chinese soldiers and China is continuously testing limits at Galwan Valley. You need a disruptive breaking news to crush all these and prove Government is in control. This is simply that. This is nothing but fueling the anti-China sentiment growing in the country. This will temporarily relieve government from answering the other growing concerns.

It's also quite ironic that so many companies with strong Chinese funding are still operating. Chinese smartphone makers are also doing great in India despite economic slowdown. OnePlus recently did a flash sale and sold out.

It'll be interesting to see what's going to happen in Long term. But this one, it's just a spicy headlines.

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