India push for digital sovereignty risks more online surveillance

India is pushing locally-made technologies such as Koo and BharOS to replace big tech, but digital experts warn it could result in greater surveillance. — Reuters

Shortly after the Nigerian government blocked Twitter in 2021 for removing a post by the country’s president, its verified handle @NigeriaGov appeared on Koo, an Indian microblogging platform that was little known overseas.

It was a major milestone for Koo, which had launched with a focus on Indian languages and a government-friendly stance even as its bigger rival Twitter increasingly locked horns with authorities over its content moderation policies.