Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey claimed on Friday that the Indian government wants to remove Bluetooth-based messaging app Bitchat, sharing what appears to be an official government order from the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Center (I4C) under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, directing GitHub to remove access to the app’s source code.
“The government of India doesn’t like technologies like Bitchat and wants them removed,” Dorsey wrote on X. Screenshots shared by Dorsey show a notice dated July 23, purportedly issued by I4C. The order directs GitHub to remove or disable access to three repositories associated with Bitchat within three hours.
Follow here for live updates
Why this post?
The post comes as authorities have repeatedly suspended mobile internet services around Jantar Mantar in Delhi, where protests have been taking place for several days.
The government issued six Internet shutdown orders over the past five days, directing telecommunications service providers to block mobile Internet within a 1.5-kilometre radius of the protest site until midnight on Friday. No extension order had been issued beyond midnight on July 24 as of Friday evening, according to people familiar with the matter.
The government targeted ‘Bitchat’ as protesters turned to it to stay connected amid internet shutdown in Jantar Mantar following repeated shutdowns of mobile internet. Unlike traditional messaging apps, Bitchat does not require an internet connection. Instead, it uses Bluetooth technology to create a mesh network that allows nearby devices to exchange messages directly.
Read also | $Rs 10 crore fine for paper leaks” > Cabinet approves draft law proposing imprisonment of up to 10 years, $10 crore fine for leaking paper
“Makes interception and investigation” difficult
Bitchat’s architecture makes lawful interception, attribution, and investigations by law enforcement agencies significantly more difficult, the I4C notice says. It says decentralized communication platforms can be exploited by anti-national elements, terrorist organisations, organized crime groups and cybercriminals.
The government has not commented publicly on the allegations or confirmed the notice. GitHub has also not responded publicly at the time of writing.
