Taiwan will suspend access to Xiaohongshu for a year after linking it to over 1,700 fraud cases and RM37 million in losses, citing cybersecurity risks.
TAIPEI: Taiwan will temporarily block access to the popular Chinese social media app Xiaohongshu after detecting hundreds of online shopping fraud cases.
The island’s Criminal Investigation Bureau said on Thursday it would issue an order to suspend internet access to the app for one year, calling it a potential “high-risk area for online shopping fraud”.
Authorities found 1,706 cases of fraud linked to the app since 2024, with financial losses exceeding NT$247 million (RM37 million).
The app has more than three million users in Taiwan.
An official suggested the block could come into effect within days.
“Further actions will be considered based on whether the company responds in good faith,” the bureau’s statement added.
Taiwan’s digital affairs ministry had warned on Wednesday that Xiaohongshu and other Chinese apps posed a cybersecurity risk.
An analysis found the apps were “collecting sensitive information” and “accessing biometric features”.
The ministry also warned about the micro-blogging platform Weibo.
There are growing concerns in Taiwan that Beijing uses social media to spread disinformation and influence public opinion.
China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force.
The Cyberspace Administration of China said in September it had ordered “warnings and strict punishment” to bosses at Xiaohongshu over its online content.
The platform, known as RedNote in English, was launched in Shanghai in 2013 and has hundreds of millions of monthly active users worldwide.
