India to ban Chinese-linked betting and lending app amid security fears

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology will block 138 betting apps and 94 loan lending apps with Chinese links

Since the start of political tension with China in 2020 following a border clash, India has banned popular Chinese apps in the country

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Chinese apps have been banned in India due to security concerns. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 6:17pm, 5 Feb 2023

India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has begun a process to ban and block 138 betting apps and 94 loan lending apps with Chinese links, India’s ANI reported on Sunday, citing sources.

The Ministry of Home Affairs recommended the MeitY ban and block these apps by the coming week under Section 69 of India’s IT law, the report said.

The IT law allows the government to block public access to content in the interest of national security, among other reasons. Orders issued under the section are generally confidential in nature.

MeitY and the Ministry of Home Affairs did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Since the start of political tension with China in 2020 following a border clash, India has banned popular Chinese apps in the country. Last year India blocked access to several mobile apps citing security concerns which was followed by China expressing concerns over bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

In the first half of 2020, nearly half of the top 20 free apps in India came from Chinese technology giants, including TikTok and Helo from ByteDance, the hit video game PUBG Mobile from Tencent Holdings, and UC Browser and VMate from Alibaba Group Holding, owner of the South China Morning Post. All of these apps have disappeared from the download charts.