India bans 232 apps offering platforms for betting and illegal loans

New Delhi: The Central Government of India has launched a digital strike on China again. The Ministry of Electronics and Telecommunication has issued an order to ban 232 apps, most of which offer platforms for betting, money laundering and extorting money from customers. These apps were found to breach privacy data and share it with entities outside India.

After the clashes between Indian and Chinese soldiers in Galwan, Ladakh, in June 2020, the Indian government acted against China on various fronts. This included banning Chinese apps trying to spread misinformation and data theft of Indian consumers. China expressed their outrage, despite this, the Indian government sustained the ban on numerous Chinese apps on the grounds of complaints and inputs from security agencies. Since 2020 to till date, nearly 321 apps hosted in China have been banned, of which 54 apps were banned in 2022, including many apps offering loans.

Nothing has changed in 2023, as the Indian government issued orders to ban additional 232 foreign apps, many of which are hosted by China. The list of apps banned is not yet issued. However, many of the apps are the ones offering quick loans.

Millions of people have been duped in the last few months by apps offering loans. In some cases, 3000% interest was reportedly charged for offering a small amount of money. There were many incidents of harassment to recover the money leading to some cases of suicides. The app operators used the platform to launder money out of the country. Hence action against such apps was important.

The Ministry of Electronics and Telecommunication has issued an order to ban 94 apps offering loans illegally. 138 apps have been identified as running illegally and offering betting and gambling, which are found to be cheating consumers. Telangana, Odisha, and Uttar Pradesh state governments have received complaints about such apps. Additionally, intelligence agencies have reported these apps as a security concern and asked the Ministry to act against the apps.

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