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Jack Dorsey
2026-10-03 15:08:40

Jack Dorsey-backed Bitchat removed from Apple and Google app stores in India

Techub, citing TechCrunch, reported that Bitchat, the crypto social app tied to Jack Dorsey, has been removed from Apple’s App Store and Google Play Store in India after an order from the Indian government. The report said the app is now largely unusable in the country. Bitchat is described as a decentralized social application that supports payments over the Bitcoin Lightning Network. The removal affects both major mobile app distribution channels in India, cutting off standard access for local users. No further details were provided in the source about the government order or the scope of restrictions beyond the app store takedown and the note that the service is basically unavailable in India.

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Jack Dorsey-backed Bitchat removed from Apple and Google app stores in India
Bitchat
2026-07-30 14:00:00

Bitchat stays online after India seeks GitHub takedown during protest-era network restrictions

Bitchat, the censorship-resistant messaging app linked to Jack Dorsey, drew fresh attention after India’s cybercrime authorities sought to restrict access to its GitHub repositories during a period of student protests and reported connectivity disruptions. The app is built to work without phone numbers, user accounts, central servers, or even internet access in its local mode, using Bluetooth mesh networking and falling back to Nostr relays when connectivity is available. According to Bitcoin Magazine, India’s Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre issued a notice on July 24, 2026, asking GitHub to restrict access to three Bitchat repositories within three hours. The notice argued that the app’s architecture, which allows communication during internet shutdowns and without centralized logging, could hinder interception and attribution by law enforcement. Jack Dorsey posted the notice on X the same day. The repositories remained accessible in the immediate aftermath, while developers and users shared mirrors, including on Radicle. TechCrunch, citing Sensor Tower data and echoed by multiple outlets, reported that India accounted for about 85% of the app’s global downloads between July 17 and July 23, with more than 91,000 downloads in India over five days and daily active users topping 330,000 at peak. Bitcoin Magazine framed the episode as another real-world test of cypherpunk-style tools during politically tense moments.

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Bitchat stays online after India seeks GitHub takedown during protest-era network restrictions
India
2026-07-25 12:48:37

India’s move to block Bitchat repositories on GitHub raises legal questions

India’s Ministry of Home Affairs has asked GitHub to restrict access to three code repositories tied to Bitchat, an offline Bluetooth messaging app backed by Jack Dorsey, setting off a legal debate over the scope of takedown powers. Authorities argued that Bitchat’s decentralized design allows it to function during internet shutdowns, which they said could facilitate illegal activity and make lawful interception harder. The request came as the app saw a sharp concentration of downloads in India. Data cited in the report showed the country accounted for about 85% of Bitchat’s global downloads between July 17 and July 23. That surge followed local protests by students over an exam leak, after which network restrictions were imposed. Legal experts said the law cited by the government does not clearly authorize the removal of an entire open-source project solely because of how the software works, rather than because of specific unlawful content. The report was cited by TechCrunch.

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India’s move to block Bitchat repositories on GitHub raises legal questions
India
2026-07-24 10:17:20

India orders GitHub to remove code tied to Jack Dorsey-linked app Bitchat

India’s cybercrime agency has ordered GitHub to take down three repositories related to Bitchat, an open-source messaging app launched by Twitter co-founder and Block CEO Jack Dorsey, according to CoinDesk. The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, which sits under the Ministry of Home Affairs, issued the order under Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act and gave GitHub three hours to comply. In its notice, authorities said Bitchat enables anonymous communication without registration, phone numbers, or centralized logs, and argued that its design “seriously obstructs” lawful interception, tracing, and investigations by law enforcement. Dorsey released Bitchat in July 2025 as an open-source project. The app uses a Bluetooth mesh network to relay encrypted messages between phones without internet access, servers, or user accounts, and it also supports offline forwarding of Bitcoin transactions. CoinDesk said the takedown move was triggered by student protests in Delhi linked to the “Cockroach People’s Party,” where protesters used Bitchat and similar Bluetooth mesh tools to stay connected after repeated internet shutdowns. As of publication, it was still unclear whether GitHub had removed the repositories within the deadline, and the app remained available on Google Play and the App Store.

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India orders GitHub to remove code tied to Jack Dorsey-linked app Bitchat