Remember when the Chinese spy balloon floated across our country? That was just insane. With apps on our phones, the Chinese government doesn’t need to be so blatant about stealing our secrets.
If you’ve been around me at all for the last year, you already know that I am no great fan of the data tracking done by TikTok and Temu. Guess what? They’re not the only apps.
Now, I’m adding even more Communist China apps to the list. No one else is putting this info out there, so I hope you share this with your family and friends.
This super popular app used to be safe
If CamScanner is on your phone, get rid of it. The scanner app is wildly popular despite ending up on a list of apps banned over concerns that the Chinese government was using them to spy on American citizens.
Pro tip: No app needed. You can scan on iPhone with the Notes app and Android with Google Drive. Steps here if you need ’em.
We lose fortunes every day
Some apps, like Pinduoduo, contain malware. Temu is owned by the same Chinese company as Pinduoduo. To make matters worse, Temu does not support two-factor authentication (2FA). That makes your account so much easier for thieves to breach. No Bueno!
Shein is another you’ve asked me about. A Chinese billionaire founded it and is known for shoddy merchandise and poor service. Oh, and their labor practices are awful.
Turbo VPN has been downloaded over 100 million times and has had multiple Chinese nationals as directors.
TikTok, Lemon8 and CapCut are all owned by ByteDance. It’s based in Beijing and is required by Chinese law to give the government access to collected data.
Apps on my “no download” list:
Here’s a — certainly not exhaustive — rundown of apps with ties to the Chinese government and their parent companies.
- TikTok – ByteDance
- Lemon8 – ByteDance
- CapCut – ByteDance
- Pinduoduo – PDD Holdings
- Temu – PDD Holdings
- CamScanner – Intsig Information
- Shein – Roadget Business
- TurboVPN – Innovative Connecting
- WeChat – Tencent
- UC Browser – Alibaba Group
- SHAREit – SHAREit Technologies
Of course, most say the government doesn’t have access to customer data. Do you trust that? I don’t. Remember, in Communist China, you can’t use iMessage. You use WeChat.
How to remove apps the right way
Delete apps from your Android phone:
- Long-press an app, then tap App Info > Uninstall.
- Go to Settings > Apps & Notifications to see a list of your apps and delete them the same way.
- Or open the Google Play Store app and navigate to Menu > My apps & games. Tap on the app and hit Uninstall.
- NOTE: Samsung and OnePlus phones have an Uninstall option under the app shortcuts menu.
Delete apps from your iPhone
- Touch and hold an app, then tap Remove App > Delete App > Delete.
- Or use the App Library, introduced in iOS 14, to get a curated list of your apps grouped by category. Swipe past the last page of your Home screen to access it. Tap and hold the app, then select Delete App > Delete.
But Kim, I must scroll TikTok
There is a safe-ish way to do it, at least where all the data from your real phone isn’t going who-knows-where. Install TikTok on an old device that’s no longer connected to your email, banking info or anything else.
If you can, keep it off your home’s Wi-Fi network and buy a cheap data plan. Otherwise, be sure to use the guest network. Hope the videos are worth it!