India’s government backs down after Apple refuses order to preinstall app

India’s government retreated less than a week after sending a private order to smartphone manufacturers instructing them to preload a state-backed app on all phones in the region. The reversal comes after industry sources told Reuters that Apple planned to refuse to comply with the order. 

Sanchar Saathi is a security app operated by India’s Department of Telecommunications that includes features for tracking and blocking lost or stolen phones using their IMEI. Anyone can download it on the App Store or Google Play Store already, but India’s government order would have required phone manufacturers to preload it on all phones in the region and block users from disabling it.

India’s Ministry of Communications announced the reversal in a statement on Wednesday, but still asserted that “[Sanchar Saathi] is secure and purely meant to help citizens from bad actors in the cyber world.” 

The statement doesn’t address the backlash and privacy concerns raised about the order to make the app mandatory. Instead, it attributes the policy change to voluntary app downloads, stating, “Given Sanchar Saathi’s increasing acceptance, [the] Government has decided not to make the pre-installation mandatory for mobile manufacturers.” 

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.