Apple removes WhatsApp, Threads in China from App Store

Users in China won’t be able to download or find Meta’s WhatsApp or Threads anymore from the App Store
An undated image of Apple logo. — Pixabay
An undated image of Apple logo. — Pixabay

Apple on Friday announced that its users in China won’t be able to download or find Meta’s WhatsApp or Threads anymore from the App Store in compliance with Cyberspace — China’s internet regulator.

The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times reported that the Cupertino-based tech giant said that the company is “obligated to follow the laws in the countries where [it operates], even when [it disagrees].”

Over the years China’s internet regulator has blocked several websites, technologies, and apps within the country; however, people still access them by using VPN.

Previously, Meta’s Facebook and Instagram were blocked while WhatsApp and Threads were available.

The Chinese internet regulator's order comes ahead of a US Senate vote, which could result in a ban on TikTok, whose parent company is Chinese.

China and America’s reasons for banning the apps are the same: they are a threat to the nation’s national security.

The current bill has allowed TikTok's parent company ByteDance a year to divest the video-sharing platform. If it fails, TikTok will be banned from app stores.