Apple has removed the Meta-owned end-to-end encrypted messaging app WhatsApp from its App Store in China following a government order citing national Meta-owned WhatsApp and Threads have been pulled from Apple’s App Store in China following a government order citing national security concerns, Reuters reports.
I have a problem with the government banning any apps, seems like a violation of the right to free speech.
In what context? Because it matters. Do you have an issue with government banning dangerous food? Do you have an issue with government banning batteries that are known to explode? Companies having to comply with safety/privacy regulations is in no way, shape, or form a violation of your free speech.
Government targeting a single company while giving carte blanche permission for others to continue their abusive behavior is a hypocrisy that nobody who cares about safety/privacy should tolerate.
There is a difference between:
vs
Do you consider free speech to be an inalienable right for an entity to collect any data about you that they would like, regardless of whether you know they’re collecting that specific data?
Not at all. There should absolutely be GDPR of what data companies can collect. But apps should be forced to keep to the GDPR, not outright banned. And they certainly shouldn’t be banned because of the country they are made in, or what users say on them. And I’m talking about apps in general, not just TikTok.