China’s cyber watchdog says it has deleted more than 7 million pieces
of online information as well as 9,382 mobile apps, and it criticized
tech giant Tencent’s (0700.HK) news app for spreading “vulgar
information”.
The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said in a statement on
its website the action was part of a clean-up of unacceptable and
harmful information that started this month, adding that it had also
shut down 733 websites.
The administration singled out Tencent’s Tiantian Kuaibao news app,
saying the platform had been ordered to make changes as it had been
spreading “vulgar and low-brow information that was harmful and damaging
to the internet ecosystem”.
Tencent did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The
regulator also criticized Huaban, a photo-sharing social network, as
having “serious ecosystem problems”. Huaban said on its website its
online service had been temporarily taken down for upgrades.
Control of the internet has tightened under President Xi Jinping – an
effort that has accelerated since 2016, as the ruling Communist Party
seeks to crack down on dissent in the booming social media landscape.
In November, the CAC scrubbed 9,800 social media accounts of
independent news providers for violations that included spreading
politically harmful information and falsifying the history of the
Communist Party.