Worried about Huawei? Take a Closer Look at Tencent

It has long been understood that Tencent — the Chinese firm that owns WeChat and QQ, two of the world’s most widely used social media applications — facilitates Chinese government censorship and surveillance. As governments around the world try to tackle problems related to “fake news,” political manipulation and weak data protections on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, Chinese counterparts like WeChat should be subject to at least as much scrutiny and regulation — and be held accountable for any violations. International civil society groups can assist users and democratic governments by maintaining up-to-date digital security guides available in Chinese, documenting the extent to which content outside China is censored or monitored on WeChat and exploring legal recourse for those whose rights may have been violated by Tencent’s practices.

Source: www.japantimes.co.jp