India Drops Plan to Force Smartphone Makers to Preinstall Cybersecurity App After Backlash and Industry Pressure.
The Indian government has bowed out of plans to require smartphone makers to pre-install its state-run "cybersecurity" app, known as Sanchar Saathi. The move comes after widespread criticism from major tech companies like Apple and Samsung, as well as opposition leaders. As a result, the requirement for manufacturers to include the app on new devices has been scrapped.
While the app is still available for download voluntarily by users, India's Communications Ministry framed its decision to drop the plan as a response to strong voluntary adoption, with 14 million users already having downloaded it – less than one percent of the country's population. This number has been increasing rapidly, and mandating its pre-installation was intended to speed up its distribution.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) celebrated India's reversal, stating that forcing smartphone manufacturers to preinstall a non-removable app would have been "terrible and dangerous" and saying it should not have lasted 24 hours longer than necessary. The organization praised organizations like SFLC.in and the Internet Freedom Foundation in India for opposing the plan.
The government had initially given companies 90 days to incorporate the Sanchar Saathi app on all new devices, with existing ones to be delivered via software updates. However, the app's potential for mass surveillance raised concerns among privacy advocates, who noted its ability to access call and message histories, files, photos, and even the camera.
Industry experts likened India's move to Russia's recent order requiring the preinstallation of a messaging app on all mobile devices. In that case, experts warned about the risk of such an arrangement being used for surveillance purposes.
Apple's resistance to complying with the Indian government's order and Samsung following suit likely played a role in the decision to scrap the plan. Additionally, opposition leaders joined forces to push back against the requirement, including Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala, who called on the government to clarify its authority for such actions.
The Indian government has bowed out of plans to require smartphone makers to pre-install its state-run "cybersecurity" app, known as Sanchar Saathi. The move comes after widespread criticism from major tech companies like Apple and Samsung, as well as opposition leaders. As a result, the requirement for manufacturers to include the app on new devices has been scrapped.
While the app is still available for download voluntarily by users, India's Communications Ministry framed its decision to drop the plan as a response to strong voluntary adoption, with 14 million users already having downloaded it – less than one percent of the country's population. This number has been increasing rapidly, and mandating its pre-installation was intended to speed up its distribution.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) celebrated India's reversal, stating that forcing smartphone manufacturers to preinstall a non-removable app would have been "terrible and dangerous" and saying it should not have lasted 24 hours longer than necessary. The organization praised organizations like SFLC.in and the Internet Freedom Foundation in India for opposing the plan.
The government had initially given companies 90 days to incorporate the Sanchar Saathi app on all new devices, with existing ones to be delivered via software updates. However, the app's potential for mass surveillance raised concerns among privacy advocates, who noted its ability to access call and message histories, files, photos, and even the camera.
Industry experts likened India's move to Russia's recent order requiring the preinstallation of a messaging app on all mobile devices. In that case, experts warned about the risk of such an arrangement being used for surveillance purposes.
Apple's resistance to complying with the Indian government's order and Samsung following suit likely played a role in the decision to scrap the plan. Additionally, opposition leaders joined forces to push back against the requirement, including Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala, who called on the government to clarify its authority for such actions.
- it's crazy how many people spoke out against a gov't plan that could've been seen as super invasive and controlling... 14 million downloads isn't bad, but still less than 1% of the country's population. think about all the other apps we have on our phones, like social media and gaming ones, and they're always changing or updating in the background without us even noticing - wouldn't want any gov't agency having that level of access to our info 
. And good luck getting people to voluntarily download this 'cybersecurity' app, lol - less than 1% of the population already downloaded it? sounds like a super successful marketing campaign 
. But hey, at least we know where our data is going... right? Just kidding, who knows? I'm sure it's just fine 
. Anyway, glad the Indian gov got cold feet on this one... maybe they didn't realize how big a headache it would be for them 
. And yay, EFF and other orgs who fought against this nonsense! About time someone stood up for our online rights 
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I was all about that pre-installed app life, but now I'm good 
. I mean, who wants some gov't app snooping around their messages and files? 
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. The EFF said it would've been "terrible and dangerous" to force a non-removable app on users... yeah, I'd agree with them 
. Anyways, let's just say this is a victory for users over gov't overreach 
i get that india wants to promote cybersecurity but forcing it on manufacturers is just too much 
especially with all the privacy concerns surrounding it... 14 million downloads in 24 hours is already pretty impressive, who needs mandating it be installed on every new device? 
about how India almost forced those phone manufacturers to put this app on their devices. I mean, I get it, they wanted people to be more secure online and all that, but come on, no one wants an app on their phone without even asking! 
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. And now that the plan is scrapped, maybe we can finally breathe a sigh of relief 
? But at the same time, it's like, what's next? 
. Still, I guess you can't force people to use something they don't wanna. Maybe it'll just stick around and people will start using it because they really need a cybersecurity app 
. And hey, at least India is listening to their users a bit more now 
. personally, i'm not sure if 14 million downloads in under a year is enough to justify mandatory pre-installation - it feels like a tiny percentage of people are still getting on board with this app 
. plus, apple and samsung aren't exactly known for being open to government interference 
. might be interesting to see how the EFF's stance on surveillance affects future legislation 
.
The government's decision is actually kinda cool (for once), so kudos to them for backing down 
. Still, it's good to see organizations like SFLC.in and the Internet Freedom Foundation standing up against this kind of authoritarianism 
. It's always the user who ends up losing out when governments try to exert control over our digital lives 
. At least for now, we can rest easy knowing that our phones won't be spied on without our consent 
what's next?! 
which is super concerning 
they were tryin to control our digital lives in india and now they're scrapin the plan 
! The EFF is like, totally right 
. It's awesome that they're giving companies a heads up and asking them to incorporate the app via software updates instead of preinstalling it 
.
. They must've seen some red flags