In an unexpected move, the Indian government recently banned 59 Chinese apps that posed a threat to the privacy of crores of Indian users. In addition, the government stated that this move would protect the sovereignty of Indian cyberspace. For years, security experts have been clamoring about the immense privacy risk and cautioning users not to use Chinese apps. Both Google and Apple have already complied with the orders and have removed the apps from their respective app marketplace. So if you are looking for an alternative to the banned Chinese apps then you have come to the right place. In this article, we bring you the 23 best Chinese apps alternatives for TikTok, UC Browser, SHEIN, and more.
1. Triller (Alternative to TikTok / Likee / Kwai / Vigo / VMate)
Among the many issues with TikTok, privacy has been a major concern for many users. Just recently, four US senators urged the FTC to investigate TikTok because it apparently failed to take down videos made by children under the age of 13 — a violation of their 2019 agreement. Besides, the advocacy group alleged that TikTok failed to protect the privacy of minors. Apart from that, many users are suspicious of apps that are based out of China because of obvious privacy reasons. TikTok, which is owned by ByteDance– a Beijing-based company — has been accused of sharing user data with China.
What’s more, you get access to top trending tracks on Triller just like TikTok. And if you loved Duet on TikTok then you have group videos on Triller where you can collaborate with anyone on the internet. I would say Triller is a promising alternative to TikTok and you can give it a shot. Note that, despite similarities, I have not mentioned Dubsmash because it had a data breach in 2019 which compromised over 162 million accounts.
UC Browser, owned by Alibaba Group of China, is the second most popular web browser across India and China, but it has had many security and privacy controversies in the past few years. In 2015, Citizen Lab published a detailed study that underlined glaring security vulnerabilities and privacy gaps within the app. The report concluded that personally identifiable information of users where sent to Umeng, an Alibaba analytics tool without any encryption.
Not to mention, UC Browser was removed from the Play Store in 2017 for misleading promotions. So if you want to browse the internet without anyone monitoring your internet activity then you should move to a secure web browser. When it comes to privacy concerns, the Chinese app, CM Browser is not behind either. It has been flagged by Indian agencies multiple times as a threat to national privacy.
Helo is another Chinese app that has had a huge success in the Indian market. It’s a social media platform for discovering viral content and sharing them with friends and communities. The catch behind Helo’s success is its highly curated content for regional audiences. The app offers its service in more than 14 Indian languages and it’s currently one of the top-ranking apps on the Play Store.
However, a recent survey done by an Indian consulting group confirmed that Helo and other Chinese apps seek excessive personal information from users. Helo wants access to the camera and microphone even when such access is not required. It clearly poses a huge threat to user privacy and one must be vigilant about it.
ShareIt started as a file transfer application, but now it has pivoted to a content platform just like Helo and ShareChat. As a result, the app has moved from its primary goal and now mostly caters to content creators. In my brief usage, I found many inappropriate contents on its app and I would really not recommend it for anything, let alone file transfer.
Similarly, Xender has been bloated with too many features like social media downloader and Game Center. Not to mention, the constant ads and popup make the experience worse.
5. Adobe Scan – CamScanner Alternative
CamScanner is s popular document scanner app and it’s run by INTSIG, a Chinese company based in Shanghai. Last year, it was removed from the Play Store after Kaspersky found a Trojan Horse module inside the CamScanner app. The researchers said that “Trojan downloader can download malicious modules depending on what its creators are up to at the moment”.
Install Adobe Scan: Anrdoid / iOS (Free, offers in-app purchases)
TurboVPN is a free VPN app that has quickly garnered wide popularity because of no speed restriction and no data limit. It’s run by a company named Innovative Connecting which is based out of Singapore. However, if you look closely, the company has deep roots with China, as revealed by Security Affairs. On top of that, the privacy policy of TurboVPN is sketchy at best and I would not really trust it.
Install ProtonVPN: Android / iOS (Free, offers in-app purchases)
AppLock is another popular Chinese app for locking apps behind a PIN, password, or fingerprint. It’s run by DoMobile and registered in Hong Kong, outside of mainland China. However, we can’t rule out privacy implications as its privacy policy states that “According to the needs of specific features, we may read (probably not save) your photos, media, and files, use the mobile camera and microphone”.
However, the best part about Norton App Lock is that, unlike AppLock, it’s ad-free and offers a clean experience. If you want to learn more, you can head over to our article on the best App Lockers for Android.
WeChat is the application that is used in China. Over the years, it has become an operating system in itself, allowing users to pay, shop, make calls, and more. WeChat is even popular outside China and millions of people use it daily. But it’s no secret that the Chinese government heavily monitors messages on WeChat and censors anything that it deems harmful. WeChat has its servers in China so all the data is easily accessible to the Chinese government.
This is unacceptable and if you are using WeChat, it’s high time that you delete that spyware from your phone. The best app to replace WeChat is WhatsApp. It’s end-to-end secure, and is used by almost everyone in the world. If you are not happy with WhatsApp and want a no-nonsense secure chatting app, you should download and use Signal (Android/iOS).
VivaVideo is a popular app for editing videos on your smartphone. But you should not be using it if you value your privacy. In a recent article published on VPN Pro’s blog, it considered VivaVideo and other apps from the same company as Chinese spyware. The app asks too many permissions that a video editing app doesn’t require.
Install: KineMaster (Android / iOS) – Free, in-app purchases, LumaFusion (iOS – $29.99)
While we have not received any privacy concerning news for BeautyPlus, it is based in China, and giving it access to all your private photos might not be a good thing. If for this reason or a reason of your own, you want to get rid of BeautyPlus, Candy Camera is your best option. It’s one of the best selfie camera apps and you get all the features such as beautifying filters, slimming effects, whitening effects, and effects of applying makeup including lipstick, blush, eyeliner, mascara, and more.
11. Keepsafe – Vault-Hide Alternative
We all have private photos and videos, and sometimes, hiding them behind an app-lock password is not enough. Sometimes, we need to remove them from our regular library and save them in a vault. Vault-Hide is an app that lets you do that. However, in a new advisory by Indian Intelligence Agencies, Vault-Hide is among the 52 apps that are red-flagged for privacy concerns. You don’t want a Chinese app to have access to your private photos.
12. Google News – (Alternative for UC News and NewsDog)
Both UC News and NewsDog are one of the most popular news apps in India. But they also feature in the list of 52 apps released by Indian Intelligence agencies. Thankfully, there are many great news apps that you can use to replace these apps. My favorite is the Google News app. Not only it gets you the latest news, but it also shows you multiple sources for the same story so you can form your own opinion.
13. Avast Antivirus – Virus Cleaner Alternative
Most apps that claim to be virus cleaner on Android and iOS devices are just a place to serve your ads and acquire your data to sell it. And now that Virus Cleaner is prominently featured in the report (mentioned above) as a threat to security, it’s time to let go of this one.
Install Avast: Android / iOS (Free, in-app purchases)
DU Battery saver has been a serial offender when it comes to privacy. No app that claims to boost your battery can do so by cleaning RAM or claearing apps. If you clean your app more often, it’s going to decrease battery lifem because re-launching apps consume more battery.
If there were already not enough reasons for not using DU Battery saver, the fact that it features in the list of 52 apps that pose a national security threat, has put it over the line. Uninstall the app right now and use Greenify if you want to improve the battery life of your smartphone.
Both ROMWE and SHEIN feature in the national security threat list release by Indian Intelligence agencies. If you are using them to buy clothes, you should stop doing that, at least until the security issues are resolved.
Install Mantra: Android / iOS (Free)
WPS Office has not been banned by the Indian government, but for the record, you should know that it’s a Chinese app and developed by Kingsoft, a Beijing-based company. You would be in for a surprise when you find out that Cheetah Mobile– developer of several dodgy Android apps which led to its removal from Play Store– is a subsidiary of Kingsoft. Not to mention, ads are a major problem on WPS Office. So any user who values privacy or wants a good office experience should not use WPS Office.
Install Microsoft Office: Android / iOS (Free, offers in-app purchases)
DU Recorder is one of the 59 Chinese apps that has been banned by the Indian government. It was popular for sharp screen recording, live streaming integration, video editing tools, and more. However, just like other Chinese apps, it was marred by too many ads which made the experience from bad to worse. So if you are looking for the best DU Recorder alternative then I would recommend Screen Recorder – No Ads. As the name suggests, it’s truly a clean app without any bloatware, ads, or unnecessary features.
18. Clone App — Parallel Space Alternative
Parallel Space was a popular Chinese app for creating dual space for apps like WhatsApp and Messenger. Basically, it was cloning the apps and running it on a separate user profile. That said, the app has now been blocked by the Indian govt on account of suspicious data collection activity. So, if you are out on a limb and looking for an alternative to Parallel Space, I would suggest you move to Clone App. It has been developed by Arty Product which is based out of the US.
Clean Master is one of those Cheetah Mobile apps that was earlier thrown out of the Play Store. And now the Indian government has officially banned the app in the country. If you are still using this Chinese app then I would strongly recommend you move to SD Maid. It’s a complete system cleaning tool that allows you to deep scan your internal storage and SD card. After that, you can delete unnecessary files and folders in just one tap. You can also remove both system and user-installed apps seamlessly. What I like about SD Maid is that there are no ads– not even small banners, unlike Clean Master which was essentially adware.
Moving further, SD Maid brings CorpseFinder that safely cleans up files and folders of apps that are no longer installed. Along with that, you can also find duplicate files and remove them altogether. Sure, SD Maid does not have a process killer like Clean Master, but that is a good thing. The way modern Android works now, you should actually not kill background processes. It does more harm than good. So overall, SD Maid is a reliable alternative to Clean Master and you should definitely give it a try.
Last year, ES File Explorer was removed from the Play Store, but you would be surprised to find that many users still use it. There are modded versions of ES File Explorer available and some are still using the last working version. That said, with the recent ban on ES File Explorer, the Indian government has taken an official stand against the app. So if you are still using it on your Android device then I would suggest you move to Solid Explorer. It’s a modern file management app and has been lauded for its clean UI and UX.
Install Solid Explorer: Android (Free, offers in-app purchases)
Mail Master has also been banned by the Indian government for its Chinese roots and having a sketchy privacy policy. It was an email app with support for multiple services like Gmail, Yahoo Mail, and more. Now with the app gone, you can use Microsoft Outlook as a suitable Mail Master alternative. Microsoft Outlook not only supports its in-house email service Outlook, but also works with Gmail, Yahoo Mail, and other POP, IMAP, SMTP email configurations.
22. Google Duo — Mi Video Call Alternative
While Mi Video Call is not operational in India, the government has still banned the app. It seems many were sideloading the Mi Video Call APK from other forums. Anyway, if you are using the Mi Video Call app then you should move to a secure video-calling to protect your privacy. In this regard, Google Duo is one of the best apps for video calling and a compelling alternative to Mi Video Call. Duo is end-to-end encrypted so no one can access your video feed or know who you are calling to. Apart from that, now Duo supports up to 32 users in a group video call which is amazing.
Among the 59 Chinese apps which was banned by the Indian government, WeMeet is one. It’s a popular social video app that allows users to video call with strangers. Sure, it sounds like a bizarre concept, but it was quite popular among its users. Having said that, the app is no longer available in India so you are better off looking for a replacement. I would recommend you Hola which is a random video chatting app and it’s based out of the US.
- TikTok
- Shareit
- Kwai
- UC Browser
- Baidu map
- Shein
- Clash of Kings
- DU battery saver
- Helo
- Likee
- YouCam makeup
- Mi Community
- CM Browers
- Virus Cleaner
- APUS Browser
- ROMWE
- Club Factory
- Newsdog
- Beauty Plus
- UC News
- QQ Mail
- Xender
- QQ Music
- QQ Newsfeed
- Bigo Live
- SelfieCity
- Mail Master
- Parallel Space
- Mi Video Call — Xiaomi
- WeSync
- ES File Explorer
- Viva Video — QU Video Inc
- Meitu
- Vigo Video
- New Video Status
- DU Recorder
- Vault- Hide
- Cache Cleaner DU App studio
- DU Cleaner
- DU Browser
- Hago Play With New Friends
- Cam Scanner
- Clean Master – Cheetah Mobile
- Wonder Camera
- Photo Wonder
- QQ Player
- We Meet
- Sweet Selfie
- Baidu Translate
- Vmate
- QQ International
- QQ Security Center
- QQ Launcher
- U Video
- V fly Status Video
- Mobile Legends
- DU Privacy
So those are the alternatives that we recommend in place of popular Chinese apps. As we went through the article, we can notice that many Chinese apps have underlying security and privacy issues that are never fixed, intentionally, or otherwise. Not to mention, many apps have been thrown out of the Play Store for such violations in the past.
