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Chinese apps were banned in the country by the government citing security reasons but it seems most of them are now available for users.
The government had banned over 200 apps from China in the country.
The Indian government banned hundreds of Chinese apps in 2020 citing security reasons amidst the Galwan situation. The list of apps included the likes of TikTok, ShareIt, Xender and a total of 267 apps.
Now, a new report claims over 30 of those Chinese apps are available in the country for its users across Android and iOS App stores. The details about these apps come via India Today who have done an in-depth search for these apps and found cloned versions of them.
Chinese Apps Back In India: Good News For Users?
Apps like Xander, ShareIt have been spotted on the Apple and Play Store, respectively, and we were also independently able to spot them in these app stores. The report does mention the name of the developer has been changed which is likely to have allowed ShareIt and more apps to get listed on the Google app store in the country.
These apps were blocked from being available after an order was passed by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeiTy) in 2020. In addition to these, you can also spot apps like MangoTV, Taobao and Tantan which is a dating platform, on Apple’s and Google’s app store.
Interestingly, we noticed that some of these apps were available on the Apple App Store but not listed on the Play Store for Android users. We can’t say if these apps have been there for years or just came back recently.
What This Means For TikTok
The sight of these banned Chinese apps back on our shores brings the most important question to the forefront, will TikTok also make a comeback in India? The short video platform has also been missing in the country since 2020 which allowed Instagram with Reels, YouTube with Shorts and other local platforms to thrive and build their presence.
TikTok is already facing question marks about its existence in the US which was recently delayed thanks to the executive order passed by US President Donald Trump but safe to say the chances of TikTok relaunching in India seems highly unlikely.
- Location :
Delhi, India, India
