Apple removes WhatsApp and Threads from its application store in China at the request of the authorities

Apple withdrew WhatsApp y Threads from its application store in China at the request of the authorities, the Bloomberg agency reported this Friday.

China closely monitors the internet and the media, subject to strict rules. Every day, censors eliminate content that criticizes state policy or that could create discontent.

In the Asian giant, users cannot, for example, access foreign websites (Google, YouTube), applications and social networks (X, Instagram, Facebook) without computer tools that allow them to bypass blocks, such as the virtual private network (VPN). ).

“The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) ordered these applications to be removed for reasons of national security,” Apple said in a statement, cited by the Bloomberg news agency.

“We are obliged to comply with the laws of the countries in which we are present, even if we do not agree,” added the American group.

WhatsApp is an instant messaging application for smartphones and Threads is a rival to X (ex-Twitter). Both belong to the American group Meta.

AFP contacted Apple, the CAC and the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Technology for comment, but none have responded so far.

Neither WhatsApp nor Threads were available this Friday in the Chinese version of the App Store, Apple’s virtual store where applications are downloaded.

The Signal and Telegram messaging applications were also not available.

However, all of these apps can still be downloaded from App Stores outside of mainland China.

WhatsApp has been largely supplanted in China by WeChat, which in addition to being a messaging service allows you to make online payments and purchases, among others.

The application is used daily by hundreds of millions of Chinese as a means of payment.

As for Threads, which allows users to post text, photo and video content, it has had an equivalent since 2009: Weibo.

Apple products, from the iPhone to the iPad, are very popular in China, one of the American group’s main external markets.

The Apple brand has always refrained from taking a position on sensitive issues or offending the Chinese authorities.

Its CEO has been received on several occasions by senior Chinese officials.