China orders government workers to stop using iPhones amid heightened tensions with US
Since November 2022, many Western countries have moved to ban TikTok, owned by Chinese tech giant ByteDance, from federal government devices over concerns that Americans’ user data could be handed over to the Chinese government if Beijing forced the company to do so, though it has never presented any solid proof.
The move by Beijing, which has not been made public, comes amid mounting mistrust with Washington over disputes on trade, technology and espionage.
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In July, China’s state security minister, Chen Yixin, called for stricter measures to “proactively defend” against spies to strengthen national security and the party’s leadership, citing risks from an unpredictable global environment.
It is not the first time Beijing has imposed restrictions on foreign technology over suspicion and national security concerns.
The ban on Tesla is still in place, sources said.
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Chinese woman bites through security wire to steal iPhone
Beijing has also stepped up legal frameworks to strengthen national security, efforts which include fashioning laws to ensure that data collected in China stays within the country’s territory.
In July, China’s new anti-espionage law came into effect, which forbade any cyberattacks against the government to gain data and information “related to national security and interests” without permission.
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Apple has hosted Chinese users’ data in a data centre located in the southwestern province of Guizhou since 2018.
In 2021, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued draft regulations requiring that all smart vehicles store data collected in China within its borders. Tesla opened a data centre in Shanghai the same year.