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Senators Ted Cruz and Patrick Leahy have written to Apple CEO Tim Cook to ask ten questions about Apple's recent removal of VPN apps from its Chinese app store:
Two US senators have written to Apple CEO Tim Cook asking why the company reportedly removed VPN apps from the company's store in China. "If these reports are true," the senators wrote, "we are concerned that Apple may be enabling the Chinese government's censorship and surveillance of the Internet."
[...] On or around July 29, Apple removed many of the most-used VPN applications from its Chinese app store. In a short email from the company, VPN providers were informed that VPN applications are considered illegal in China.
"We are writing to notify you that your application will be removed from the China App Store because it includes content that is illegal in China, which is not in compliance with the App Store Review Guidelines," Apple informed the affected VPNs.
[...] Now, in a letter sent to Apple CEO Tim Cook, US senators Ted Cruz and Patrick Leahy express concern at the move by Apple, noting that if reports of the software removals are true, the company could be assisting China's restrictive approach to the Internet.
"VPNs allow users to access the uncensored Internet in China and other countries that restrict Internet freedom. If these reports are true, we are concerned that Apple may be enabling the Chines[sic] government's censorship and surveillance of the Internet."
Leahy and Cruz were cosponsors of the USA Freedom Act.
Previously: Apple Capitulates, Removes Unlicensed VPN Apps From China App Store
Russia Bans VPNs and Tor, Effective November 1
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Saturday October 21 2017, @02:44AM (14 children)
Western leaders want their backdoors to cryptography, eastern leaders just want to shoot secure and secret communications out of the water. Which is better, which is worse? But, western leaders need to feel superior, no matter how they have to contort themselves to do so.
Another bit of hypocrisy tacked on to the first: national sovereignty. We claim the right to do anything, anywhere, but China doesn't have the right to run things their way, within their own borders?
Let it be noted that I disapprove of China's methods, as well as our own. I'm not taking sides here, just pointing out the typical dishonesty of politicians.
(Score: -1, Redundant) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 21 2017, @03:00AM
In other news water is still wet, more at 11.
(Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Saturday October 21 2017, @04:41AM (2 children)
The Chinese version is worse. It opens you up not only to state surveillance, but also makes you vulnerable to anyone else who manages to get hold of your connection (say, some rogue access point MITMing you).
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Saturday October 21 2017, @05:42AM
As opposed to what? Backdoor, no privacy whatsoever if the "master" of backdoor wants it, plus your pants down to any hacker that cracked your backdoor opened?
Both a equally bad for you as a citizen, the Chinese is no protection, the westernized version is an illusion of protection.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 1) by tftp on Sunday October 22 2017, @02:12AM
The Chinese version is better. It tells you clearly and without doubt that this here link is not secured. Do not use it for anything that you wouldn't want printed in a newspaper; that includes your bank account, your healthcare reports, and the like. The Western version pretends that there is security, but nobody can tell how much. It creates illusion of security and prompts people to treat it as secure, when those in the know would steer away from it - like geeks keep away from twitbook, for example.
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 21 2017, @04:57AM (9 children)
We also say that Iran and North Korea can't have nukes.
Look, international law is a polite fiction. Might makes right. It's silly to pretend that it could be otherwise.
Given the situation, I highly approve of my country being a winner. It is better to be the bully than to be bullied. The power struggles of nations affect the personal well-being of their inhabitants in many ways, such as currency value and the ability to get advantageous trade deals. I like my life comfy, not starving.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Saturday October 21 2017, @05:45AM (7 children)
Sic transit gloria mundi.
Now you are a bully, now there's another bully on the block - especially when you have a clown as the president, the second "now" may come quicker than you'd like.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 21 2017, @08:15AM (6 children)
Being polite and predictable is no way to stand up to Putin or Kim.
Sometimes being polite and predictable is the correct strategy. Sometimes you have to be an asshole. If physically shoving the prime minister of a minor European country to the side might have a useful psychological effect on other world leaders, you do it. Sometimes you drop bombs. Sometimes you bribe foreign government officials.
The job of the US president is definitely not to be loved all around the world. Trump is doing his job correctly, and the fact that you find this unpalatable is of no importance.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 21 2017, @08:41AM
Putin gets it. [thehill.com]
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 21 2017, @11:07AM (3 children)
- Retreat from Paris accord - the others stay in
- Retreat from UNESCO [theguardian.com] - with payments arrears
- Planning to renege on the Iran nuclear deal - all the other 6 members plan to stay in [reuters.com]
Do it some more times, and US will start to be alone.
(Score: 0, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 21 2017, @05:28PM (2 children)
When you are an 800-pound gorilla, you don't do everything by consensus.
If countries want to be in the Paris accord, cool. We don't benefit from being in it. Let other countries fuck up their own economies. We'll be fine. The accord was absurdly biased against us anyway. We paid the most, and we had to make severe economy-destroying changes, while China and India got to increase pollution and all sorts of minor countries got huge payments.
UNESCO was junk. Again, we paid the most. It was a little we-hate-Israel club.
The nuclear deal with Iran was screwed up because the people on our side were personally benefiting from it. Some of those people are the same ones who made a similar nuclear deal with North Korea back during the Clinton administration. Clearly that didn't do what we supposedly expected it to do.
Being alone is not a bad thing. Don't fear it. We are not in a situation like Slovakia, Armenia, Rwanda, Bolivia, or Bhutan. We have hundreds of millions of people. We have millions of square miles of land, much of it good for farming and mining. We have access to two huge oceans; the Indian ocean is less important BECAUSE WE ARE NOT THERE. Our mere presence makes our oceans matter.
We've become addicted to interaction with the rest of the world, but we really could go it alone while retaining modern life. We have this capability. We can also shove other countries around. We are a mighty country. Unilateral actions are what we do.
Heck, some of us take your fear as a blueprint for the future: Do it some more times, and US will start to be alone. 'MURICA! FUCK YEAH!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday October 21 2017, @09:53PM
Heh, nostalgia or delusion, I wonder which?
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Saturday October 21 2017, @10:54PM
My fear? Yeah, I suppose so.
The natural fear any sane person has to have of a mad crazed aggressive one.
Does this mean the sane persons need to play mad? I really doubt it when alternative solutions exists.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Saturday October 21 2017, @11:12AM
Ummmm... you omitted Xi [wikipedia.org], I think this is where your worry should be placed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Saturday October 21 2017, @02:51PM
"It is better to be the bully than to be bullied."
You're sure of that? Bullied kids can grow up, and overcome being bullied. The bully? He'll probably remain a mental midget, on emotional crutches, all of his life. That is, IF one of his victims doesn't eventually tear his head off, and shit down the hole they find under there.