The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities in China's Taiwan region have faced growing pushback after ordering a full ban on the popular Chinese social media app RedNote, a move that left many local users frustrated. Critics argue the decision is politically driven, saying officials are using "anti-fraud" measures as a pretext to curb platforms linked to the Chinese mainland.

The region's so-called internal affairs department on Thursday announced a one-year suspension of RedNote, citing concerns that the platform posed a risk of online shopping scams. In a statement, the "internal affairs department" described the app as a potential "high-risk area for fraud" and said access would be blocked immediately.

Reports from multiple Taiwan media outlets highlight RedNote's rapid growth on the island, with its user base now exceeding 3 million. Following the DPP authorities' move to block the app, users are expected to face login issues, missing content and videos that fail to load. Businesses and creators who depend on RedNote for marketing and sales say they will be unable to process orders, run advertisements or provide customer services.

DPP authorities have also warned that the ban could be extended if RedNote does not meet the region's so-called "minimum security standards," leaving users and businesses uncertain about the platform's future accessibility.

Taiwan's United Daily News notes that RedNote provides diverse content, from fashion and beauty to food, travel and celebrity news. For many young users who rely heavily on the app, the ban has come as a major shock. Online forums and comment sections quickly filled with complaints, with users asking where they will now find travel tips, beauty advice and other practical guides once offered on RedNote.

Echoing public skepticism, Taiwan's China Times highlighted recent official figures on reported suspected online scams over the past 30 days. The data show that Facebook accounted for the highest number of cases at 52,325, followed by Threads (10,366), Instagram (7,464), Meta Audience Network (5,539), Meta Messenger (4,714), Line (974), Google (289) and TikTok (287). RedNote, however, did not appear in the report, raising further questions about the rationale behind the ban.

Political commentator Julian Kuo, a former legislator for the DPP, suggested that the decision to block RedNote may have been orchestrated by Liu Shyh-fang, head of the region's so-called internal affairs department. Liu is known for her staunch anti-mainland stance and has previously faced complaints over alleged mistreatment of Taiwan residents. Kuo publicly said, "When actions like this keep happening, people see double standards, and public resentment grows."

Hung Mong-kai, a member of the Legislative Yuan representing New Taipei city, added that the ruling party is using its political ideology to the extreme. "If the goal is truly to fight scams, I fully support it," he said. "But it must be applied equally – everyone should be treated the same."

The RedNote ban is part of a broader pattern of restrictions on Chinese apps by Taiwan's DPP authorities. In July, the government flagged several popular platforms, including RedNote, Weibo, Douyin, WeChat and Baidu Cloud, for posing what it described as "extremely high cybersecurity risks."

Responding to DPP authorities' claim, Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, stated that the "cybersecurity" excuse only exposes their own insecurity. They fear that people on the Taiwan island will learn the truth about the mainland through various channels, fear that the "information cocoons" they worked so hard to create will be broken, and fear that cross-Strait communication will bring people closer and lead to deeper understanding.

Chen added that the DPP authorities are acting in panic and abusing their power and that such actions will inevitably face public backlash.