Apple Rejects Centre's Order To Pre-Install Sanchar Saathi App; Cites Privacy Risk
New Delhi: iPhone manufacturer, Apple, has reportedly refused to comply with India’s recent order that mandate to pre-install a state-owned app called Sanchar Saathi, or Communication Partner, within 90 days.
The application, according to the government, is intended to track stolen phones, block them and prevent them from being misused. However, the move has sparked widespread concerns about the alleged violation of individual privacy, with opposition leaders slamming the ruling dispensation.
The government has confidentially ordered companies including Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi to preload their phones with an app called Sanchar Saathi.
India’s telecom ministry called the move as a security measure to combat “serious endangerment” of cyber security. However, the move sparked concerns online to which the country’s telecom minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia responded the app is “voluntary and democratic system,” adding that users can choose to activate it and can “easily delete it from their phone at any time.”
Read Also: Pre-Installed Security App Sanchar Saathi ‘Optional, Can Be Deleted’: Union Telecom Minister
Appl may not go to court or take a public stand, but it will tell the government it cannot follow the order because of security vulnerabilities, as per the report.
