‘Creative imagination’: Government denies report on new security tests for smartphones

The central government has denied a Reuters news report that it would likely force smartphone makers to allow the removal of pre-installed apps and mandate the screening of major operating system updates under proposed new security rules, calling it “unlimited imagination.”

Sharing the report on Twitter, Union Electronics and Technology Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said the report was “clearly false” and based on a “lack of understanding” of the ongoing talks between the government and industry players on mobile security guidelines.

“This story is patently false – there is no such thing as ‘security testing’ or ‘countermeasures’ as the story suggests,” Chandrasekhar wrote on Twitter. “The story is based on a lack of understanding, perhaps n unfettered creative imagination based on constant ministry consultation. n Industrial Mobile Security Guidelines as per BIS Standard IS17737 (Part 3) 2021.”

“@GoI_MeitY is 100% committed to Ease of Business n is fully focused on growing Electronics Mfg to $300 billion by 2026,” he added.

A Reuters report on Tuesday, citing two people and a government document, said India’s IT ministry is considering new rules, the details of which have not been previously reported, amid concerns about spying and misuse of user data.

“Pre-installed apps can be a security weak point and we want to make sure that foreign countries like China don’t exploit it. It’s a matter of national security,” a senior official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

According to the report, the new rules would likely lengthen release schedules in the world’s No. 2 smartphone market and lead to losses due to pre-installed apps for players such as Samsung, Xiaomi, Vivo and Apple.

The issue of data breaches and the risks associated with using Chinese mobile apps and phones was first raised in 2020. After the Galwan Valley clash, the Indian government banned several Chinese mobile apps. The government had banned 59 Chinese apps, including popular ones like TikTok, WeChat and ShareIt, to protect the privacy of its citizens. The list is longer as new apps have been added in recent months. But these apps have come back to India with new identities, posing a significant threat to the security and privacy of Indian users.

Globally, several countries have already imposed restrictions on the use of technology by Chinese companies such as Huawei and Hikvision, fearing that Beijing could use it to spy on foreigners. However, the Chinese government denied such claims.

Currently, many smartphones come with pre-installed apps that cannot be removed, such as Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi’s app store GetApps, Samsung’s payment app Samsung Pay mini, and iPhone maker Apple’s Safari browser.

What the Reuters report says

According to the report, smartphone makers will have to offer an uninstall option, and a laboratory authorized by the Bureau of Indian Standards Agency will check new models for compliance with the new rules, two people familiar with the plan said.

The board also considers reviewing every major operating system update before it’s released to consumers, one of the people said.

Reuters’ February 8 confidential government minutes of an IT ministry meeting state that “Majority of smartphones used in India are pre-installed with apps/bloatware that pose serious privacy/security issues”.

Representatives of Xiaomi, Samsung, Apple and Vivo participated in the closed-door meeting, the record of the meeting shows.

The government has decided to give smartphone manufacturers a year to comply with the entry into force of the rule, the date of which has not yet been confirmed, the document added.

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