PUBG Mobile: Is the game still playable in India and is that a threat?

The Indian government initially banned PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite in the country on September 2nd. However, the game was still playable for the majority of the users who already had it installed. To which, the game developer said that they’ll be shutting down its servers in India to comply with the ban orders. Shutting down servers meant that all the data related to Indian players will be lost and it will no longer be stored anywhere. Technically, it meant that there was no entity to host the game. While PUBG Corp’s Facebook post created tremors that nobody will be able to play the game, it seems that the users were worried a little too soon.

Apparently, the famous battle royale game is still running on the phones of the users who already have it installed in their phones; Implying that the shutting of servers did not affect the accessibility of the game. This may also mean that servers were not taken down at all. However, that is not the case. Tencent did take down PUBG’s India servers. What makes the game still playable is its wide variety of versions. Depending on the requirement of a particular region, the game is customized by its developers. This was done probably to enable more connectivity with the game.

Now, the server that was closed was limited only to the Indian region and not the global one. It is presumed that the servers to which Indian users are being connected to are the global ones. Other people say that it may be the South Korean servers as the game also has PUBG Mobile Korean Version among its many other versions. As of now, none of these presumptions can be solidified because there is no official notice from PUBG Corporation.

Is PUBG Mobile still a threat?

India’s government took legal action against all those apps that could have caused harm to the users’ data. The ban on Chinese apps like TikTok and WeChat was done to ensure the safety of Indian users. There was a possibility that these apps could be sharing the users’ data with the Chinese government. While the companies have denied these allegations, the laws made by the Beijing authorities speak otherwise. Every Chinese company, according to the law, is required to share the data it collects with the government. And, countless articles are mentioning the importance of data security. Considering the border disputes between India and China, it becomes, even more, riskier to expose the data in the hands of someone who can potentially misuse it at any time.

What are the visible threats?

When it comes to PUBG Mobile, there is no such threat that is currently visible. The game was developed in South Korea and was initially a PC game. Its mobile version was launched only to mark a presence in China, where it was banned earlier. And as per the Chinese corporate rules, a foreign company is required to tie-up with a Chinese company to get its products launched in mainland China. Consequently, PUBG Corporation tied up with Tencent Games and its mobile version was developed. This version was taken overseas and gained a huge audience from Asian countries.

Apparently, the mobile version garnered more audience than the PC version. This was probably because mobile is much more accessible and also it was free. Till then, there was a possibility that it could threaten national security. But the South Korean developer severed its ties with Tencent Games to get back its market dominance in India. Its disconnection with Tencent proves that it may no longer be a threat to national security. The company even revised its data collection, storage and sharing policies. However, it seems that all of this might still not be enough to get its ban lifted. Earlier, it was rumoured that Mukesh Ambani’s Jio could be the one buying PUBG’s publishing ties. But there was no confirmation on any of these speculations.

Don’t fall into the trap

Since the game is taken down from Android and iOS devices, several websites are posting APKs and download links to get the application. Amid the genuine ones, there may be bad actors who can use this vulnerability to distribute malware and illegally collect users’ data. With the rising number of cyberattacks, no such links can be trusted even if they’re from a credible source. Hence, it is highly recommended to not “fall into the trap” of downloading the game from any sort of links or APKs as cybercriminals can potentially misuse this opportunity. Until PUBG Mobile comes back, It is always better to go for other options like Garena Free Fire or Call of Duty Mobile which has gained humungous audience since the game was taken down.