India says users may delete mandatory state-owned ‘security’ app – 9to5Mac

Following pushback from a mandate requiring phones in India to come pre-installed with a state-owned, undeletable app, the government is now saying that the app may be deleted if users choose to do so.

The move, however, is unlikely to change Apple’s refusal to comply with the order. Here are the details.

India says its ‘duty’ is to introduce the app, but users can choose whether to keep it installed

Last week, the Indian government issued a directive requiring smartphone makers to pre-install a state-owned app called Sanchar Saathi.

The Indian government has been promoting Sanchar Saathi as a security app, offering tools to report stolen devices, block a phone’s unique IMEI number with carriers, and report spam or scam phone numbers.

Earlier today, Reuters reported that Apple would not comply with the mandate:

Apple however does not plan to comply with the directive and will tell the government it does not follow such mandates anywhere in the world as they raise a host of privacy and security issues for the company’s iOS ecosystem, said two of the industry sources who are familiar with Apple’s concerns. They declined to be named publicly as the company’s strategy is private.

One of the many sticking points of the mandate was the apparent requirement for the app to be undeletable, in addition to being either pre-installed on new devices or automatically installed via a software update.

Now, the Indian government appears to have softened its stance on the requirement for the app to be undeletable, although it is still apparently requiring it to be pre-installed or auto-installed by manufacturers:

This partial shift is unlikely to change Apple’s stance on the matter, since it doesn’t address the company’s other concerns regarding privacy and security.

This impasse comes at a time when India plays an increasingly important role in Apple’s business, both as a manufacturing alternative to China and as a rapidly growing consumer market, and it adds to a recent dispute involving a potential $38B antitrust fine in the country.

Whether any of this may cause the local government (or even Apple) to take action against the company’s domestic operations in the country remains to be seen.

Google, meanwhile, has yet to weigh in, as the company hasn’t replied to multiple news outlets’ requests to comment on the issue or to clarify whether it intends to comply or similarly refuse the mandate.

Great Apple deals on Amazon