Indian government withdrew the order on Wednesday, mandating the pre-installation of the cybersecurity app Sanchar Saathi on smartphones by manufacturers.
The Department of Telecom (DoT) said that it is removing the order mandating installation of the Sanchar Saathi app, following a 10-fold jump in voluntary app downloads in just one day.
"The number of users has been increasing rapidly, and the mandate to install the app was meant to accelerate this process and make the app available to less aware citizens easily. Just in the last day, 6 lakh citizens have registered for downloading the app, which is a 10x increase in its uptake. Given Sanchar Saathi's increasing acceptance, the Government has decided not to make the pre-installation mandatory for mobile manufacturers," the DoT said in an official statement.
In its November 28 order, the ministry had directed smartphone makers to pre-install the app on all new devices and push it through updates on older ones. This order led to controversy with opposition leaders raising snooping concerns, saying the app could listen to calls and monitor messages.
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