China’s Cyberspace Administration has demanded that Apple pull four popular messaging apps from its China-based App Store over national security concerns. WhatsApp and Threads, owned by Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, along with Signal and Telegram, could circumvent China’s ‘Great Firewall’ via virtual private networks.
“We are obligated to follow the laws in the countries where we operate, even when we disagree. The Cyberspace Administration of China ordered the removal of these apps from the China storefront based on their national security concerns,” Apple confirmed in a statement.
The takedowns come as the Chinese Embassy in the United States is lobbying Congress directly over the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications bill. Passed by the House of Representatives but still requiring Senate approval, the bill would require ByteDance, the China-based parent company of TikTok, to divest from the social media app or be banned from operating in the U.S.
The Chinese regime, which denies controlling TikTok, insists its intervention is “not about lobbying for a single company but about whether all Chinese companies can be treated fairly.”
Chinese state-owned entities own “golden shares” in ByteDance, giving Chinese Communist Party apparatchiks veto power on its board.
Lolbertarians: “BUT WE MUST KEEP TIKTOK IN AMERICA BECAUSE CCP LOBBYISTS TOLD ME TO!” https://t.co/7vU2DqaWIN
— Raheem. (@RaheemKassam) April 19, 2024
