China wants to restrict the use of mobile file-sharing services such as AirDrop and Bluetooth in a move that will expand its censorship machine.
Bluetooth, AirDrop and such file-sharing services are crucial tools in China, where the so-called Great Firewall has resulted in one of the mostly tightly-controlled internet regimes. In recent years, anti-government protesters have often turned to AirDrop to organise and share their political demands. For instance, some activists were sharing anti-Xi Jinping posters using this tool on the Shanghai subway last October - just as the Chinese president was awaiting a historic third term as the country's leader.
I doubt they will. They already added a 10 minute limit in airdrop for the “receive from everyone” setting (China first, now worldwide). From a security perspective it’s a good change but it does block the usefulness of airdrop as a tool for mass messaging.
Apple has repeatedly giving in to Chinese government, despite all their marketing on "privacy", because China is a huge market for them. As much as I hate google for most of their practices, they have the basic decency to volunteeringly leave China when their regulations is against the company value.
bluetooth has been included on basically every communication capable device manufactured in the last 15+ years, easily hundreds, probably thousands of different manufacturers.
this is an unrealistic expectation.
the apple thing though? easy. apple and the CCP are like besties these days.
@Venus You may have missed some points when reading, so here are a few quotes.
The national internet regulator [Cyberspace Administration of China]
on Tuesday launched a month-long public consultation on the proposals.
Proposals unveiled by the Cyberspace Administration of China on Tuesday ...
Phone and app developers who want to continue operating in China will have to play by the new rules - or be culled from app stores, said a software engineer who wanted to stay anonymous.
(Emphasis mine.)
I agree with you in that it paves the way further to George Orwell's 1984.
It's crazy how just reporting on things factually said and done by the CCP will get you called a liberal and a US propagandist. You've truly lost the plot.