The Canadian government is taking steps against China by banning the app WeChat from government devices.
Western government have already taken similar actions with Russian and Chinese apps. TikTok is banned on US Federal devices for example. Reuters reports:
Canada on Monday banned Chinese messaging application WeChat and Russian antivirus program Kaspersky on government-issued mobile devices due to privacy and security risks, but said government information had not been compromised.
The ban was announced after an assessment by Canada’s chief information officer that Tencent-owned WeChat and applications made by Moscow-based Kaspersky “present an unacceptable level of risk to privacy and security,” the Treasury Board of Canada, which oversees public administration, said in a statement.
WeChat is a large app intended to achieve many services, clocking in at over 600 MB prior to additional files. That is significantly larger than other apps likes TikTok, Instagram or X. The BBC says:
The Chinese-owned app is sometimes referred to as the “everything app” – like WhatsApp, Facebook, Amazon and Tinder all in one.
However Western governments have security concerns about it, mainly that the app could be used to spy on users.
This trend is a reflection of the nationalization of the internet. Individual countries are exercising their sovereignty by limiting access to competitors’ networks, which can be used to subvert systems of government.
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