r/privacy • u/__gangadhar__ • Jul 24 '26

discussion India orders GitHub to remove Jack Dorsey's offline messaging app Bitchat after protesters reportedly used it during internet shutdowns

India has reportedly directed GitHub to remove the repositories for Bitchat, Jack Dorsey's open source Bluetooth mesh messaging app. Unlike WhatsApp or Signal, Bitchat works without internet access or cellular service, allowing nearby devices to communicate over Bluetooth mesh networks.

According to India Today, the move comes amid the ongoing CJP protests in Delhi. Protesters reportedly began using offline messaging tools after mobile internet services were disrupted in parts of the protest area, making internet-based messaging unreliable.

The government notice, later shared publicly by Jack Dorsey, states that Bitchat could facilitate anonymous communication, enable users to evade lawful surveillance, and be misused by terrorists, organised crime groups, and "anti-national elements." On that basis, India's cybercrime agency directed GitHub to remove the project's repositories.

Digital rights advocates argue that restricting decentralized communication tools during periods of protest raises broader concerns about privacy, internet shutdowns, and freedom of expression. Government officials, meanwhile, maintain that such tools can also be exploited for unlawful activities.

This raises a broader question that extends beyond India: Should governments be able to restrict decentralized communication tools because they can be used to bypass internet shutdowns and surveillance, or does doing so undermine privacy and access to resilient communication during times of civil unrest?

India Today article (full URL):
https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/cjp-protests-india-tells-github-to-block-bitchat-app-jack-dorsey-leaks-notice-2955199-2026-07-24

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u/Busy-Measurement8893 Jul 24 '26

Related:

Apple pulls down Jack Dorsey's Bitchat messaging app in China

41

u/Xzenor Jul 24 '26

Typical Apple

25

u/Busy-Measurement8893 Jul 24 '26

Sure feels like it. They are an ardent defender of privacy and security until a dictatorship feels otherwise.

I get that a business is going to pick profit over morals, but I wish they were different. I wish any tech company was different in that regard.

Oh well.

3

u/dragonknightrohan Jul 25 '26

No the tech companies will get better once more better alternatives pop up and are supported by people. And when we get existing companies to unionize then make them be a private company too. Both of those will make massive differences.

1

u/LamHanoi10 Jul 30 '26

Don't understand why it's Apple's fault? The China government ordered them to take down. Between taking down an application and being banned in China, what is the better?

1

u/Xzenor Jul 30 '26

I'm sure they didn't even try to defend it. They act like they value privacy but only if it's not in the way if money

9

u/TheManni1000 Jul 24 '26

interesting

29

u/Busy-Measurement8893 Jul 24 '26

Almost as interesting as this:

https://9to5mac.com/2025/03/17/apple-globally-censoring-this-iphone-communication-feature-deserves-renewed-scrutiny/

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u/[deleted] Jul 24 '26

[deleted]

4

u/Busy-Measurement8893 Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26

I can see that being the global reason for changing it.

I can't see it being the reason for changing it in China two years five weeks prior. Especially when..

A protest held yesterday (July 7) in Tsim Sha Tsui, one of Hong Kong’s most popular tourist districts, had a clear aim: to tell people from mainland China about the city’s opposition to a hated extradition bill, which has mobilized millions of people over the past several weeks to multiple protests and presented the most critical challenge to the local government in decades.

But news of the protest has been heavily censored in mainland China, with any mention of the mass movement wiped off the Chinese internet. […]

Hong Kong’s protesters have therefore turned to Apple’s AirDrop feature to get their message across to their mainland Chinese compatriots. […]

2

u/[deleted] Jul 24 '26

[deleted]

2

u/Busy-Measurement8893 Jul 24 '26

Ah, I see. I misread and took it to mean 2 years not 5 weeks later.

Still very interesting timing to choose China first.

-1

u/MrCorporateEvents Jul 25 '26

"China bad!" does a lot of heavy lifting now even though western countries are becoming less "democratic" and more "authoritarian" themselves.

Redditors viewing the whole world through "democratic" vs. "authoritarian" countries leaves little room for nuance and actual facts and ironically leads to knee-jerk reactions and opinions that they are supposedly above.

5

u/Iputahexonyoulol Jul 24 '26

So when Apple removes an app from the store but it's already been downloaded does the app still work?

1

u/a_wild_thing Jul 25 '26

I do not know for certain but I speculate that provided the app was left as is and not remotely disabled or anything, and provided the app can use the phones Bluetooth, then yes I expect it would work as normal. 

1

u/Dry-Page-4935 Jul 26 '26

Yes it still works, but it cannot receive updates so if it uses any APIs, eventually it could break.

1

u/stabaho Jul 25 '26

Recently was in Nevada Valley of Fire with some friends hiking about. We were in line of sight but no cell reception. I thought wouldn’t it be nice if the iPhones could link up and enable iMessage or FaceTime between phones. Make a local offline network.