Mitron app controversy: Is Mitron a Pakistani app in disguise?

There has been a controversy surrounding the origin of the Mitron app, an Indian rival of TikTok, which has gained quite the popularity literally overnight. According to a report by a media portal, the source code for the Mitron app, UI, and features were allegedly made by a software development company based in Lahore, Pakistan.

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The Mitron app controversy

Qboxus, a Pakistan-based software development company, created an app called TicTac that resembled TikTok. The app was later rebranded in India as Mitron whose source code was purchased from a website called CodeCanyon for a mere $34 (₹2,571).

And while its claim to fame is based on its Indian roots, Irfan Sheikh, the founder of Qboxus, believes that calling Mitron as an India born app wouldn’t be accurate, as the owners who purchased the source code from them did not bother to make any changes or improvements to the app. Interestingly, Mitron doesn’t feature its own customisations and is simply a direct copy of TikTok clone app called TicTac.

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Is Mitron a Pakistani app?

The QBoxus team has claimed that the TicTac app was actually created by them before putting up the source code of the app on sale. The source code was reportedly purchased by an IIT Roorkee student, Shivank Agarwal, who rebranded the app into Mitron. And while this may imply that it's now an Indian app, QBoxus has alleged that the new owner did not make any changes or customizations to the app which puts the app's security into question.

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Is Mitron app safe?

According to a cybersecurity expert, it isn't safe to use the Mitron app in its current form. This is mainly because the app does not come with any additional firewall or software security above the source code. The privacy policy of the app is weak that may likely put a user's data and security at risk.

Qboxus also claimed that the Mitron app has privacy issues as the app developer did not upload the privacy policy. The company also stated that they do not encourage people to simply rebrand an app and make it public without making any changes.

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Image credits: Google Play Store