- The ministry of electronics and IT, issued orders to ban 118 more Chinese apps after banning 59 apps in the first round.
- The new apps include popular mobile gaming app PUBG, and apps from the stable of Baidu, Tencent and Xiaomi.
- Last month the government has prepared a list of 275 more Chinese apps including PUBG which could be banned on concerns of data security.
- This comes after fresh tensions on the border between India and China.
- In view of information available they are engaged in activities which is prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order.
- The apps have been banned invoking powers under
- Section 69A of the Information Technology Act
- read with the relevant provisions of the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking of Access of Information by Public) Rules 2009 and
- in view of the emergent nature of threats has decided to block 118 mobile apps.
- The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, Ministry of Home Affairs has also sent an exhaustive recommendation for blocking these malicious apps.
What is Section 69A?
- Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, was introduced by an amendment to the Act in 2008. It gives the Central government the power to block public access to any information online — whether on websites or mobile apps.
- Under Section 69A, if a website threatens India’s defence, its sovereignty and integrity, friendly relations with foreign countries and public order, the government can ban it, after following due procedure.
- The detailed procedures to do so are listed under the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009.
- Apart from this, a court may also issue directions for blocking information online. The Department of Telecommunications, too, can issue blocking orders to internet service providers, to enforce licensing conditions.
In the interest of national security
- A feature of Section 69A is that it includes terms such as “security of the state, emergency nature, sovereignty and integrity of India and public order”, which are common for national security determinations across Indian laws.
- The Section mandates strict confidentiality about complaints and action taken.
- Due to the presence of this clause, Right to Information (RTI) queries are not applicable to the law.
- Moreover, the committees to examine requests and review appeals comprise entirely members from the executive.
- In its 2015 judgment in the landmark Shreya Singhal v/s Union of India case, the Supreme Court of India upheld the validity of Section 69A and the extant blocking procedures.
- The court said that the law was constitutional and a website could be blocked only on the basis of reasoned order.
- The Supreme Court also emphasised that the law has sufficient safeguards under which the order can only be issued with the committee’s approval to block a website after it has heard the aggrieved party.
- As mentioned in the Rules, in all cases, whether emergency or not, the reasons to block the website have to be recorded in writing.
