Report, Indian Army asked soldiers to remove 89 apps including Facebook, Instagram, Tinder: Report

The Indian Army wants its personnel to delete everything from TikTok, Facebook, Truecaller and Instagram, to games like PUBG Mobile and dating apps like Tinder, as well as news apps like Daily Hunt and all ‘personal blogs’. According to some reports, the Army is asking its employees to delete these apps to prevent leakage of information. The inclusion of a category like dating apps shows that the Army is not just concerned about cyber breaches, but also about information leakage in the real world. Recently the government had banned 59 Chinese apps, but this list is even bigger and is not limited to Chinese apps only.

One of the news agency ANI Tweet There is a picture of a page shared in which a list of the names of these apps is made, the title ‘Social Media Apps: Banned for Usage’ is also written in it. Citing Army sources, the tweet also said that the Army has banned these apps to prevent leakage of information. Another one from IndiaTV News Report It has been said that the Army has set a deadline of July 15 to remove these apps, otherwise the personnel will face action. Earlier, a Times of India Report It was reported that the Army had allowed its personnel to use Facebook, but with restrictions such as not posting pictures in uniform or revealing the location of their units.

These also include some of the most popular apps in India, like Facebook, Instagram, Tinder and PUBG Mobile. Additionally, some larger categories have also been included such as “all Tencent gaming apps” and “personal blogs”, in addition to the 59 Chinese apps that are already banned. The title of the list suggests that there is talk of removing apps. However, it is not clear whether the websites of platforms like Facebook or Reddit are also banned as these can be easily accessed from mobile browsers rather than apps.

The ban is apparently related to the tensions that are taking place between India and China, but unlike the government list, this ban will only apply to military personnel. This is not the first time that the Army has ordered such a ban. Gadgets Now’s one that came out in the beginning of this year Report According to , the Army had warned officers using Facebook and WhatsApp. In this order, personnel were asked not to carry smartphones in bases and dockyards as well as on warships. Not only this, “the use of Facebook by all Naval personnel was prohibited and the use of smartphones within Naval Bases/Establishments/Dockyards/Warships was prohibited.”

Let us also tell you that the US Army had also banned the use of TikTok by soldiers. US military spokesman Lt Col Robin Ochoa told US-based news portal Military.com, (translated) “This is being considered a cyber threat. We do not allow this on government phones.”