FOR one year, popular Chinese social media app RedNote or Xiaohongshu will not be accessed in Taiwan over complaints of online shopping scams.

According to a local media report, the island's Criminal Investigation Bureau sdetected more than 1,700 fraud cases on the app since last year, with total losses worth more than NT$247m (£5.9m; $7.9m).

A report by BBC stated that the app is a TikTok-like platform with built-in shopping features.

Because of reported scams, Taiwan's internet service providers have been ordered to block access to the app, affecting at least three million domestic users, according to local reports.

The BBC report stated that the platform is no longer accessible to some users. When accessed, a message advises users that the app is unavailable due to "security restrictions."

According to Taipei Times, the app's operators do not have a local office and have not responded to regulators' request to submit a plan to improve its cyber-security measures.

Xiaohongshu was launched in 2013. It has hundreds of millions of users worldwide, and is especially popular in Asia.(MyTVCebu)

• Tags
• #Taiwan
• #Chinese app ban
• #RedNote
• #Xiaohongshu
• #online shopping fraud
• #e-commerce scams
• #Criminal Investigation Bureau
• #NT$247 million losses
• #TikTok-like app
• #cyber-security
• #ISP block
• #app restriction
• #3 million users affected
• #Asia tech
• #consumer protec