Why is UC Browser still working in India after getting banned?

The Government of India recently banned as many as 59 Chinese mobile applications, citing national security concerns. The ban includes some of the highly used mobile apps including the likes of TikTok, Helo, WeChat, SHAREit, and UC Browser, among others. And while TikTok was amongst the first apps on the list to be removed from Google Play and the App Store, a number of applications are still part of the listing on both the marquee app stores, including UC Browser.

Developed by Chinese mobile internet company UCWeb, UC Browser is among the world's top web browsers for mobile devices and was the eighth-most downloaded mobile app of the 2010–2019 decade. The mobile browser is widely popular in countries like China, India, and Indonesia.

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Why is UC Browser still working in India?

While UC Browser is one of the banned Chinese apps in India, it is still available on both the Google Play Store and App Store, meaning people can still download the app on their phones. However, there are plenty of other banned apps that are also listed on these platforms. To implement the ban, the government of India has issued a notice to both Apple and Google to restrict these applications on their marquee app stores.

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Why is UC Browser still not banned completely?

The UC Browser is currently available on both Android and iOS for download and is functioning just fine as of now. This is because the ban hasn't been implemented yet. The Indian government is also in talks with ISPs and telecom operators in the country to help enforce a complete ban on these Chinese-linked apps apart from getting them delisted from Google Play and the App Store. Once these apps disappear from the app stores, the ISPs will be blacklisting all the host-name and domain names that are associated with these platforms for the ban to come into full effect. 

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To ensure a complete ban on UC Browser, the Internet Service Providers will need to stop all the data traffic on the web browser as data is one of the most essential factors for UC Browser to remain functional. The app will be blocked on 4G and wired internet connections that are managed by companies including Vodafone, Jio and Airtel.

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Image credits: UC Web