China’s social commerce platform Xiaohongshu back in Chinese Android app stores after two month absence

Social commerce platform Xiaohongshu was reinstated in several Chinese Android app stores this week after a two month absence in one of the latest examples of apps falling afoul of tighter government regulations over the country’s cyberspace.

Xiaohongshu was available in several Chinese Android app stores on Tuesday although it still cannot be found on Apple’s China iOS app store. The precise reason for the app’s removal in the first place remains unclear although Xiaohongshu is not the first popular Chinese app which has been taken down amid “content rectification” action in recent months as the authorities in Beijing continue a crackdown on online content deemed offensive, inappropriate or politically sensitive.

Xiaohongshu was not immediately available for comment.

“We have started a comprehensive investigation and rectification of content, and are engaged in self examination with cooperation from all relevant [government] departments,” Xiaohongshu said in a Weibo post after the removal.

In June, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), which oversees the country’s cyber policy, said it had punished 26 audio apps, including music sites, podcasts and audiobooks, for spreading pornographic content and for promoting “historical nihilism”, which it defined as stories about zombies and ghost marriages.