According to Bloomberg, Apple has taken down Meta's WhatsApp and Threads from its App Store in China. This action follows a directive from the country's primary internet regulator.
In Beijing, there is extensive internet censorship, preventing mainland China web users from accessing various foreign apps and Google without using a virtual private network.
Apple stated, according to Bloomberg, that they are bound to comply with the laws of the countries where they operate, even if they disagree with them.
Apple stated that the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) ordered the removal of these apps from the China storefront due to national security concerns.
The apps are still available for download on other storefronts where they are listed.
A Meta spokesperson referred AFP to Apple, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The CAC and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, both prominent Chinese internet regulatory bodies, did not respond immediately.
China is a crucial market for Apple, and it emerged as the leading smartphone market last year.
However, issues related to censorship and national security have been persistent challenges for the US-based company in China amid the intense competition between Beijing and Washington for technological dominance.
In January, China claimed to have cracked Apple’s encrypted AirDrop communication service, which was previously used by protesters during the major 2019 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.
State-backed experts revealed in January that they had developed a method to expose an iPhone’s encrypted device log, enabling them to identify an AirDrop user’s phone number and email accounts.
Popular online platforms such as Google, Facebook, X, WhatsApp, and TikTok are all blocked in mainland China.
Despite this, resourceful iPhone users in China have still managed to download restricted platforms through Apple’s app store and use a VPN to bypass the restrictions.
The removal of WhatsApp and Threads from the Chinese app store will significantly complicate the process for new iPhone users to access these apps.
This development comes just before a scheduled vote in the US House of Representatives to compel the widely popular video app TikTok to sever all ties with its Chinese parent company ByteDance.
US officials have expressed concerns in recent years about potential national security and privacy risks posed by TikTok, despite the firm's assurances that it poses no threats to the American public.
Beijing has frequently criticized US restrictions on Chinese technology, alleging that they are a pretext to contain the country’s economic growth.
AFP
