India restricts access to 14 mobile applications that terrorists in Pakistan use to communicate in J&K
According to a source, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) recommended blocking certain apps, including IMO, Wickrme, Mediafire, Conion, Briar, BChat, Nandbox, and Zangi.
Central Government Banned Mobile Apps
To prevent terrorists from sending information to Kashmir from Pakistan, the Indian government has blocked 14 messenger mobile apps.
The central government has disabled 14 Messenger mobile applications that were being used by terrorists in Pakistan to communicate with Jammu and Kashmir.
Some of those apps are:
The government has restricted access to several apps, including Enigma, Crypviser, Mediafire, Safeswiss, Wickrme, BChat, Nandbox, Zangi, IMO, Element, Briar, Second Line, Conion, and Threema.
Apps are banned because they pose a threat to internal security
Sources claim that terrorists in Pakistan used the applications to communicate with operatives in Jammu and Kashmir’s union territory over ground personnel using coded messages.
According to a source, the concerned department has blocked Wickrme, Briar, Mediafire, Nandbox, Enigma, BChat, IMO, Conion, Zangi, Element, Crypviser, Second Line, Threema, and Safeswiss upon the recommendation of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
The Information Technology Act of 2000’s Section 69A has been used to block these apps. “Initially, 15 mobile applications, including a popular messenger mobile application, were identified, but action was later taken against 14 apps,” a source said.
What did the intelligence services say?
A central intelligence officer stated that they recommended action after learning that terrorists and their supporters were using these apps to contact on-the-ground workers (OGW) in J&K.
“Intelligence agencies also disclosed to the MHA that many of these apps are made to provide their users with anonymity and that, as a result of their features, it is challenging to identify the entities associated with these apps. These mobile apps enable terrorists and their affiliates to engage in activities detrimental to India’s sovereignty and integrity and capable of upsetting peace and harmony,” another source claimed.
Banning apps for national security isn’t new
The government’s response to mobile applications threatening national security is not new.
The Indian government previously outlawed many Chinese apps, claiming that they were “hazardous to the integrity and sovereignty of India, the defense of India, the protection of the state, and public order.”
Over the past few years, about 250 Chinese apps in total have been prohibited. Over 200 Chinese apps, including well-known ones like Xender, TikTok, UC Browser, WeChat, Shareit, UC News, Helo, Bigo Live, Likee, and Camscanner, as well as well-known mobile games like Garena Free Fire, and PUBG Mobile, have been banned since June 2020.
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