App stores in China ordered to register with the government

It's for their own good

App stores operating in mainland China must register with the government's Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) today in what the government claims is an attempt to clamp down on the spread of mobile malware.

It follows the passage of a law in June 2016 that will also require mobile app developers to verify user identities with a real-name registration regime, and to save user activity logs for at least 60 days.

In addition to helping the authorities keep their eyes on people and the kind of stuff being circulated across the internet in China, the new law is also intended to combat the proliferation of app stores that offer insecure or downright fraudulent apps, as well as piracy and apps bearing malware.

The situation has largely arisen because the Chinese government insists on blocking Google's Play Store, forcing Android users to download apps from a cornucopia of third-party app stores.

The app stores will also be required to closely monitor users of their apps as part of a government push to increase online censorship and to "punish" people who spread what the CAC called "illicit information" on their platforms.

"A small number of apps have been exploited by criminal types to spread violence and terrorism, pornographic material, rumours and other illegal information," the regulator claimed when the law was passed in the summer.

The new regulations were released suddenly on Friday and provided the first indications that the government planned to actually enforce the law.

Laws in China (like criminal justice acts in the UK) are often intentionally broad in order to give the authorities the widest possible range of action but, at the same time, are often not enforced. The order from the regulator on Friday indicated that the authorities are planning to enforce the law, although forcing the real-names policy may take some time.