An App namely ‘Remove China Apps’ which made headlines last week after being upheld and endorsed by some right-wing figures, was removed by Google from the Play Store on June 2.
The developer of the app, a Jaipur based OneTouch AppLabs took to Twitter to announce that the app has been suspended from Play store. Before being removed the Remove China Apps had clocked over five million downloads on the Play Store within two weeks of its launch. Though the reason behind such a move is not known yet, Google usually removes apps that violate the Play Store’s policies.
The app’s removal comes soon after Google pulled the Mitron app from Play store. Mitron was a clone of TikTok that also benefitted from anti-China sentiments and also saw lakhs of downloads.
The tech giant ‘red-flagged the app and decided to suspend it for violating its ‘spam and minimum functionality’ policy’, said a CNBC report. ‘Another clause of the policy mentions a ‘repetitive content’, which means ‘copying content from other apps without adding any original content or value’ amounts to a violation,’ the report further stated.
Remove China Apps was built to let users delete all applications on their phones that are developed in China. It scanned the user’s device and listed the apps with China as their origin. The app also helped users decide which Chinese app they want to keep or remove.
Assuring the users that the app is safe to work and does not affect any stored personal data Satyajit Sinha, a cybersecurity researcher at Counterpoint told The Indian Express that the Remove China Apps app just identifies the app developer’s country of origin by comparing it with the repository database of apps developed in China.
Apart from India, the Remove China Apps application had also gained momentum in Australia. Even though the app has been removed from the Google Play store, it will continue to function on phones that already have it installed.
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