Indian government orders Google and Apple to remove 54 apps from download stores

By order of the Indian government, 54 apps have been removed from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. The reason for this is that the apps and games would transfer data to servers in China and therefore pose a threat to the privacy of Indian users.

This includes games that come from the stable of the Chinese Tencent, writes Hindustan Times. The most famous of the list of 54 apps is Garene Free Fire, a battle royale game with an estimated tens of millions of players in India. In addition, there are photo apps and equalizers on the list.

The Indian Ministry of Information Technology says in a statement from which the newspaper quotes that the apps forward data from Indian users to servers in an “enemy country” and misuse that data. The Indian government can do that on the basis of the IT Act of 2000. Google and Apple have since removed the apps, TechCrunch writes.

This is not the first time India has banned Chinese apps. TikTok has been banned in the country since mid-2020. PUBG has also been pulled from download stores in India, along with over 150 other apps in total. India is one of the largest markets for app developers.