India stands up to China; to ban 138 Betting Apps & 94 Loan Apps on emergency basis

New Delhi: On an "urgent" and "emergency" basis, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) have taken proactive measures to block and ban 138 betting apps and 94 loan lending apps with Chinese connections because they violate Section 69 of the IT Act by containing content that is prejudicial to India's sovereignty and integrity.

India to ban and block 138 betting apps and 94 loan lending apps with Chinese links

Asymmetric economic warfare is carried out by Chinese nationals in India, and last year, the Intelligence Fusion & Strategic Operations (IFSO) Unit of Delhi Police's Special Cell detained two individuals, one of whom was a Chinese national, for extorting money from victims via instant loan applications. 22 persons were detained for allegedly diverting Rs 500 crore to China through the hawala channel or by investing in cryptocurrencies. Modules, a group with connections to China, had been operating covertly in India through loan applications.

In response to its ongoing money laundering investigation into alleged financial irregularities by instant app-based loan companies, the Enforcement Directorate conducted raids against some payment gateways and others last year. Instant app-based loan companies have proliferated and mushroomed, and many of them are "controlled" by Chinese customers.

Since 2020, shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in the nation, the ED has targeted payment gateways. The Central Agency has also searched the Bengaluru-based offices of payment gateways including Paytm, Razorpay, and Cashfree.

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Gullible borrowers have taken their own lives as a result of loan-based applications, which have devastated India's middle class. According to the police, these victims were coerced and harassed by the loan app businesses, who exposed their personal information on their phones and used aggressive tactics.

Chinese lending app businesses' Machiavellianism was obvious when they collected all of the borrower's personal information when the borrower downloaded the apps, even though the interest rates were "usurious." Numerous complaints about rapid loan applications disbursing loans at higher rates and even after repayment of the loan were reported at the NCRP portal. These Loan App Companies used altered nude photographs and other extreme measures to collect money.

Prashant Gautam , Deputy Commissioner of Police (IFSO),

"IFSO took cognizance of the same and started analyzing the complaints at NCRP. During the analysis of the complaints, it was found that more than 100 such apps are involved in the loan and extortion racket,"

"It was also found that all the apps were seeking access to personal data from the user. After obtaining access to personal data like contacts, chats, messages and images of the user, the same were being uploaded to the servers in India and abroad,"

"Applications were developed in the garb of loan providing apps. These applications were malicious in nature and sought all permissions from the user. Applications were hosted on Google Play and websites. Users in need of a loan downloaded the applications by granting all the permissions. Soon after this, the application started uploading the contact lists, chats, images of the user to the servers hosted in China and other areas,".

"This data was also sold to different private firms. The customers were receiving calls from different numbers (procured on fake IDs) forcing them to pay more and more by threatening them using the morphed pictures. Due to fear and stigma, the users began paying them money in different bank accounts opened against fake IDs,". "The money collected was diverted to specific bank accounts and then sent out of the country through Hawala or after purchasing cryptocurrencies. People who were in dire need of a small loan ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 were being forced to pay even in lakhs,".

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