Apple Removes Apps From China Store That Help Internet Users Evade Censorship
“We gladly filed an amicus brief in support of Apple in their backdoor encryption battle with the F. B.I.,” he said, “so we are extremely disappointed
that Apple has bowed to pressure from China to remove VPN apps without citing any Chinese law or regulation that makes VPN illegal.”
He added, “We view access to internet in China as a human rights issue, and I would expect Apple to value human rights over profits.”
In a statement, Apple noted that the Chinese government announced this year that all developers offering VPNs needed to obtain a government license.
ExpressVPN wrote in its blog that the removal was “surprising and unfortunate.”
It added, “We’re disappointed in this development, as it represents the most drastic measure the Chinese government has taken to block the use of VPNs to date,
and we are troubled to see Apple aiding China’s censorship efforts.”
Sunday Yokubaitis, president of Golden Frog, a company
that makes privacy and security software including VyprVPN, said its software, too, had been taken down from the app store.
“These apps remain available in all other markets where they do business.”
This is not the first time that Apple has removed apps at the request of the Chinese government,
but it is a new reminder of how deeply beholden the tech giant has become to Beijing at a moment when the leadership has been pushing to tighten its control over the internet.
A search on Saturday showed that a number of the most popular foreign virtual-private networks, also known as VPNs, which
give users access to the unfiltered internet in China, were no longer accessible on the company’s app store there.
