Apple pulls WhatsApp from China app store on Beijing request

Foreign social media platforms like WhatsApp were already largely inaccessible from China without tools to circumvent Beijing’s Great Firewall, such as virtual private networks. The removal of these apps will make it more difficult for users within the country to view content on these international platforms. — AFP

Apple Inc said that it removed Meta Platforms Inc’s WhatsApp and Threads from its China apps store after an order from the country’s Internet regulator, which said the services pose risks to the country’s security.

The order comes on the heels of a cleanup program Chinese regulators initiated in 2023 that was expected to remove many defunct or unregistered apps from domestic iOS and Android stores. The action against the American tech services comes as the US government is taking steps toward a ban on TikTok, the hit video app from Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd. US politicians have also cited national security concerns in their push to force the company to either sell TikTok to a non-Chinese owner or face a ban in the US market.