Chinese applications are actively downloaded, although they may threaten the security of other countries
Smartphone apps developed by Chinese companies are proliferating around the world despite a growing trend for governments to view them as a potential security threat. This is reported by Nikkei Asia.
To confirm this, the American research company Sensor Tower analyzed the five most popular downloads in 95 countries and regions. Of the 475 top applications in the first quarter of this year, 156 were Chinese. This is 33% of the total and 8% more than in 2020.
The TikTok platform made it to the top five in 82 markets (86% of the total). Video editing app CapCut ranked in the top five in 48 markets (51%). And the Shein app proved to be popular among young people and had high performance in Europe and South America. He was among the leaders in 10 countries, including Spain and Brazil.
In the US, Chinese applications also occupy the first places. Overall, they are also in the top five in about 90% of countries and territories. But they are not in the top ten countries, in particular in India and Japan.
However, applications developed in the US have about the same level of presence. For example, Instagram and other applications from Meta account for 25% of the total. But in 2020, American apps had 50%.
As you know, countries around the world are tightening restrictions on Chinese apps for national security reasons. For example, in the US and Europe, government officials are prohibited from installing them on state-owned devices.
Instead, the Chinese government has the right to require companies based in the country to disclose the personal data they hold. Additionally, most foreign apps remain unavailable in China due to government regulation. Such an imbalance may lead to further pressure from the government.