TikTok, a phone app where users can watch short videos of others lip-syncing or dancing to popular songs, has been banned in India. However, the question is that Why is TikTok banned in India? Because India accused the app of being a security threat and promoting pornography. It is claimed that the app is a platform for spreading “unethical and unlawful content.” TikTok has denied all of these accusations.
Reason Why is TikTok Banned in India?
As of April 2020, TikTok is banned in India. The app was banned due to concerns about national security and data privacy. Below are some more reason to explain Why is TikTok banned in India? Read out.
The clash of India and China
The app went down in India on 15 June as the Indian and Chinese government clashed due to political tension and border disputes. It gave way to the bloodshed between them at the Himalayan border in Galwan valley. News spread of some of the Indian soldiers being killed there.
China did not acknowledge the encounter, nor did they admit to being guilty. But India banned all of their popular apps including TikTok. A total of 36 other Chinese-based apps, including Alibaba and WeChat were banned.
Security Issue
There are several more reasons why is TikTok banned in India. Another major reason is the national security concerns. TikTok has been accused of being a tool for Chinese propaganda and a security risk due to its sharing of user data with the Chinese government.
Privacy Issue
Another reason for banning TikTok was data privacy concerns. The app has been criticized for collecting extensive data on its users, including their location, contact information, and browsing history. There are also accusations claiming that the app frequently censors content that is critical of the CCP.
Did China respond after the TikTok ban in India?
India is not the only country to ban TikTok; the app has also been banned in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Iran. We can say that China has lost its largest market of 69 million Indian users. They launched the app with support for 14 types of Indian languages. They have denied every accusation of the Indian govt by releasing a challenging statement to India.
“TikTok continues to comply with all data privacy and security requirements under Indian law and has not shared any information of our users in India with any foreign government, including the Chinese government” (source “BBC UK).
Indian users are trying to find alternatives to the app after TikTok’s ban in India. Because many users generate content as full-time creators, many of them have quit their jobs to perform on this app. They are now trying to transfer to other platforms, but they still can’t reach the height given to them by TikTok. And they are still nursing their wounds.
What to do if Tiktok is banned in your country?
Even if TikTok is banned in your home region, there are still ways to access the app.
One way is to use a VPN app to bypass the ban. You can also download the apk for the app from an unofficial source, such as a third-party app store.
However, despite the ban, TikTok remains one of the world’s most popular social media platforms. In countries where the app is still available, it has millions of downloads. It remains to be seen whether the ban will be permanent or if TikTok will eventually be allowed back in these countries.
Conclusion
India claimed that TikTok was a threat to their security, misused their users’ data, and secretly gave it to the Chinese government. That’s why TikTok is banned in India. China hit back and claimed that they are all false accusations. They claim that the Chinese government is not doing any of this because they already have their app “Douyin” in China.