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There is a reason, why India banned not only TikTok, but 58 other apps of Chinese companies, after at least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a clash with Chine

by krn 6y ago

There is a reason, why India banned not only TikTok, but 58 other apps of Chinese companies, after at least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in a clash with Chinese forces this year. It's called national security. Russia's Yandex, Mail.ru, and VKontakte have been banned in Ukraine since 2017 for the same reason[1]: > Russia also continues to hack into individual cellphones, with Ukrainian Colonel Ivan Pavlenko saying that the Russians had gotten into his phone at least twice in 2018. He also confirmed that Russia has used its ability to tap into cellular networks to send SMS text messages to Ukranian troops. > These are tactics that the Kremlin has also reportedly used against NATO countries, including the United States, and allows Russia's intelligence services to both scrape potentially useful personal information and possibly insert disinformation onto these devices. The texts can also be psychological warfare tools, with past reports that some were purely insulting or threatening. Using hacked personal information, those threats could include very distressing ones directed at family members or significant others. I believe, that the Internet of the 2020s cannot be compared to the Internet of the 1980s. It has become a business platform, and any country has the right to ban a foreign company from operating in its territory. Especially so, if that company is based in a foreign state that is not considered trustworthy. And trust is based on mutually shared values: which the US and China have almost none. At least to the Communist Party of China this has been clear for decades. [1] https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/30741/ukrainian-officer-details-russian-electronic-warfare-tactics-including-radio-virus https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/30741/ukrainian-office...

pjc50 6y ago
I note that VK is not banned in other Western countries. I'm not sure what conclusions we can draw from that.
- krn 6y ago
  VKontakte is not a national security risk in other Western countries, because it's only popular in Russian-speaking world. And Ukraine is currently the only country that is actively trying to break away from it.
Barrin92 6y ago
> It's called national security. it's called retaliation. Can you explain to me how a social media platform mostly used by teenagers relates to military clashes on a contested border? And Ukraine isn't exactly the best example. The country is a political and economic basketcase with a lower per capita income than Iraq, and one of the reasons is that for eons terrible policy making has been justified by vaguely pointing at Russia. You really can't just say the words 'national security' like some magical incantation. There better be an actual evidence-backed reason for clamping down on economic activity. Especially if the group you're clamping down on actually is one of your biggest trading partners, which happens to be the case for both US-China and Ukraine-Russia.
- krn 6y ago
  > it's called retaliation. Can you explain to me how a social media platform mostly used by teenagers relates to military clashes on a contested border? That's bullshit. The US and India are not the only countries that are concerned about the TikTok's data collection practices. The investigations have also been launched by the governments of Australia, Japan, Turkey, Indonesia, Pakistan, and the EU[1]. > You really can't just say the words 'national security' like some magical incantation. There better be an actual evidence-backed reason for clamping down on economic activity. Especially if the group you're clamping down on actually is one of your biggest trading partners, which happens to be the case for both US-China and Ukraine-Russia. Here you go[2]: > Russia’s intervention in Ukraine expanded beyond geography and into social networks last year, when Moscow officials tried to collect personal data on Ukrainians who joined social media groups protesting the country’s pro-Russian former president. > Pavel Durov, founder and chief executive officer of Russia’s largest social media website, VKontakte, claims he refused a demand by the Federal Security Service—the KGB’s successor agency—to turn over details on members of 39 protest groups with VKontakte pages. [1] https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/08/03/its-not-just-united-states-these-governments-see-tiktok-growing-problem/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/08/03/its-not-just... [2] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-04-17/the-kremlin-tried-to-use-vkontakte-russia-s-facebook-to-spy-on-ukrainians https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-04-17/the-kreml...
- tiktokemployee 6y ago

by krn 6y ago

pjc50 6y ago

I note that VK is not banned in other Western countries. I'm not sure what conclusions we can draw from that.

krn 6y ago
VKontakte is not a national security risk in other Western countries, because it's only popular in Russian-speaking world. And Ukraine is currently the only country that is actively trying to break away from it.

Barrin92 6y ago

> It's called national security. it's called retaliation. Can you explain to me how a social media platform mostly used by teenagers relates to military clashes on a contested border? And Ukraine isn't exactly the best example. The country is a political and economic basketcase with a lower per capita income than Iraq, and one of the reasons is that for eons terrible policy making has been justified by vaguely pointing at Russia. You really can't just say the words 'national security' like some magical incantation. There better be an actual evidence-backed reason for clamping down on economic activity. Especially if the group you're clamping down on actually is one of your biggest trading partners, which happens to be the case for both US-China and Ukraine-Russia.

krn 6y ago
> it's called retaliation. Can you explain to me how a social media platform mostly used by teenagers relates to military clashes on a contested border? That's bullshit. The US and India are not the only countries that are concerned about the TikTok's data collection practices. The investigations have also been launched by the governments of Australia, Japan, Turkey, Indonesia, Pakistan, and the EU[1]. > You really can't just say the words 'national security' like some magical incantation. There better be an actual evidence-backed reason for clamping down on economic activity. Especially if the group you're clamping down on actually is one of your biggest trading partners, which happens to be the case for both US-China and Ukraine-Russia. Here you go[2]: > Russia’s intervention in Ukraine expanded beyond geography and into social networks last year, when Moscow officials tried to collect personal data on Ukrainians who joined social media groups protesting the country’s pro-Russian former president. > Pavel Durov, founder and chief executive officer of Russia’s largest social media website, VKontakte, claims he refused a demand by the Federal Security Service—the KGB’s successor agency—to turn over details on members of 39 protest groups with VKontakte pages. [1] https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/08/03/its-not-just-united-states-these-governments-see-tiktok-growing-problem/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2020/08/03/its-not-just... [2] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-04-17/the-kremlin-tried-to-use-vkontakte-russia-s-facebook-to-spy-on-ukrainians https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-04-17/the-kreml...
tiktokemployee 6y ago