Tumbleweeds are a-blowin’ through app stores in China, as unmonitored and foreign-run communication tools continue to vanish. The latest is Skype, which has been missing from Chinese app stores — including Apple’s — for a month, according to the New York Times.
The Times’ investigation says the move may indicate a crackdown by President Xi Jinping’s administration on privacy, encrypted communication, and “internet freedoms.” A new cybersecurity law the government instituted in June, which includes language that justifies widespread removal of non-compliant apps, may be politically motivated to cut off access once and for all to foreign news outlets and social networks.
