India banning PUBG among 118 Chinese apps triggers US call to 'freedom loving countries'

Openly backing India's move to ban 118 more mobile apps with Chinese links, including popular game PUBG, the United States on Wednesday called on all freedom-loving countries and companies to join "the clean network." US State Department quoting Keith Krach, US Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment said, "India has already banned 100 plus Chinese apps. We call on all freedom-loving nations and companies to join The Clean Network."

'The Clean Network'

Earlier this year, the Trump administration rolled out the Clean Network program, a comprehensive approach to guarding its citizens' privacy and its companies' most sensitive information from aggressive intrusions by malign actors, such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

India's move to ban the apps amid fresh border tensions with China in Ladakh. The 118 apps banned on Wednesday include Baidu, Baidu Express Edition, Alipay, Tencent Watchlist, FaceU, WeChat reading, Government WeChat, Tencent Weiyun, APUS Launcher Pro, APUS Security, Cut Cut, ShareSave by Xiaomi, and CamCard, besides PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite, according to an official release.

"The Government blocks 118 mobile apps which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, the security of the state and public order," the statement said. This takes the total count of Chinese-linked mobile apps banned by India to 224.

'A matter of deep and immediate concern'

The statement cited numerous complaints received by the IT Ministry from various sources, including several reports about the misuse of some mobile apps available on Android and iOS platforms for stealing and surreptitiously transmitting users' data to servers outside India.

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"The compilation of these data, its mining and profiling by elements hostile to national security and defence of India, which ultimately impinges upon the sovereignty and integrity of India, is a matter of very deep and immediate concern which requires emergency measures," the release said.

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Earlier on June 29, the government had banned 59 Chinese apps, including hugely popular TikTok and UC Browser, saying they were prejudicial to sovereignty, integrity and security of the country. That ban, applicable on apps such as WeChat and Bigo Live, had come in the backdrop of a stand-off along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh with Chinese troops. The June ban was followed by blocking of 47 more Chinese apps that were clones and variants of the ones banned earlier.

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(With agency inputs)