India bans PUBG, Baidu and over 100 China-linked apps

Another 118 Chinese mobile apps have been banned by the Indian government as tensions between the two countries continue to rise.

Those on the list include several of Tencent’s products, including the hit video game PUBG Mobile and WeChat Work.

Previously, the government had banned 59 of the most popular apps, including TikTok, over national security concerns.

India’s IT Ministry said it had “credible information” that the latter group was acting against the interests of India.

Other affected apps include:

The ministry said it had received many complaints from “various sources,” including several reports about “the misuse of some mobile applications available on the Android and iOS platforms to steal and surreptitiously transmit user data in an unauthorized manner to servers that they have locations outside of India. “

“The collection of this data, its extraction and profiling by elements hostile to the national security and defense of India, which ultimately affects the sovereignty and integrity of India, is a matter of very deep and immediate concern. requiring emergency measures. “

The ban comes in the context of tensions along the disputed Himalayan border.

Both India and China deployed more troops to the Ladakh region in June, and the fighting has left at least 20 Indian soldiers dead.

Satellite images appear to show that China has built new structures overlooking the Himalayan border region.

The United States has also recently cracked down on Chinese apps, threatening to ban TikTok and ordering American companies to stop doing business with Tencent’s WeChat platform. White House trade adviser Peter Navarro has said the administration has other Chinese applications on the horizon as well.