India wants to build its own version of WhatsApp. Kind of.
According to TechCrunch “the New Delhi government is said to be pondering about the need to have homegrown email and chat apps”, and is contemplating establishing its own communications platform that can be used by government agencies without concerns of foreign interference.
Apparently, the decision stems from recent political instability in international relations, according to CNN.
These tensions have evoked the desire to no longer rely on foreign corporations for communication networks.
A government official has expressed their concern in a local report by The Economic Times and stated “we are vulnerable and we must take steps to cover that.”
By starting their own app, the Indian government hopes to introduce a platform via which they can disclose sensitive information without fear of foreign intervention. A central part of the new model is that most data would remain based in India.
However, while embarking on this venture India may want to consider taking a page out of France’s playbook (the nation launched its own private messaging app, Tchap, last year.)
France had similar intentions to India, with the aim of creating a protected platform government officials could safely use to share high level information. The app utilized end-to-end encryption and ensured that all data was localized.
Unfortunately TechCrunch reported within days of its launch, a flaw was found. A non-government employee, Elliot Alderson, was able to create an account on the app and access public channels.
Fingers crossed for India’s new messaging platform…
What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.
Written by Anushé Samee.