The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has blocked access to Gamban, a UK-based application that helps users block betting and gambling websites and applications, for the past three years under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act (IT Act).
In Gamban’s letter to MeitY, accessed by MediaNama, the company said the blocking was “illegal and arbitrary” and sought revocation of the blocking order. The nine-year-old app operates in 197 countries with over 55,000 active users and claims to block more than 480,000 gambling websites and applications.
App unavailable since February 7, 2023, on Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store: “Gamban solely offers gambling-blocking software; it does not offer any games on the app or any payments or purchases related to games,” the company stated in its April 21, 2026, letter to the Designated Officer under Section 69A of the IT Act and to S Krishnan, MeitY’s Secretary. Since 2023, this has been Gamban’s fifth letter to MeitY.
- Gamban’s URL on Apple App Store — [Link]: “App Not Available: This app is currently not available in your country or region.” However, the same URL is accessible on web browsers on a laptop without a VPN.
- Gamban’s URL on Google Play Store — [Link]: “We’re sorry, the requested URL was not found on this server,” reads the web version of the Play Store. The same URL on mobile results in “Item not found.”
MeitY did not provide blocking orders: Despite the blocking since February 7, 2023, the company claims that it hasn’t yet received any blocking orders from MeitY and says, “The only response that we have received so far from the MeitY is an email dated 6th May, 2025, wherein the ministry has stated that it has followed the due process as envisaged in the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking for Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009, to block the Gamban mobile application.” Typically, MeitY doesn’t disclose Section 69A blocking orders, citing “strict confidentiality.
MeitY does not have the legal right to mandate security audits: Gamban claimed that MeitY asked for the “security audit of the application and infrastructure to be done by a government-approved agency.” Responding to this, Gamban’s letter read, “there is no provision under the IT Act or Rules or any other law for the time being in force mandating such a security audit.” Additionally, it said there is no list of government-approved agencies provided by MeitY and thus concluded, “such a mandate of security audit is unjustified and contrary to law.” Nonetheless, it disclosed that the company already holds International Organization for Standardisation (ISO) certification from the UK-based CDL group, valid until August 7, 2026.
MeitY invoked Section 69, but no reason was provided: The letter highlighted that MeitY’s 2025 letter “does not provide details as to which of the grounds prescribed under Section 69A of the IT Act”. Section 69A of the IT Act (2000) deals with the blocking powers of the central government and its authorised officers. The content can be blocked if it is “necessary or expedient” in the interests of:
- “sovereignty and integrity of India,
- defence of India,
- security of the State,
- friendly relations with foreign States or
- public order or
- for preventing incitement to the commission of any cognizable offence relating to the above.”
What is MeitY’s reasoning behind the blocking orders? According to the May 6, 2025, letter quoted in Gamban’s letter to MeitY, it listed the following allegations:
- Concerns regarding user data privacy, especially for Android users.
- The app functioned as a super app on the device, monitoring browser searches and history while also accessing other apps, including sensitive banking and financial apps.
- Users might see an increase in gambling-related advertisements if they don’t continue their subscription.
Gamban’s response to the allegations: Responding to the first allegation, regarding the Android user privacy, the company said:
- The Gamban App is fully compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) guidelines.
- Their Android app and other apps collect data necessary for operation.
- Most of the data processing is on-device, and no data is sent over the network.
- They said that they do not collect tracking or analytics data beyond crash reports and user-provided diagnostics; that they share none with third parties and delete them after 14 days.
Responding to the second allegation, that the app is acting as a super app and collecting more user data than required, it said that the claim is “misconceived and factually incorrect”. It further added:
- It said that Gamban requests admin and accessibility service permissions on the device, but uses heuristics, such as the address bar, to check for and block gambling domains, along with screen-related settings to prevent circumvention of the filters.
- Gamban does not scan or access any banking or financial apps.
Gamban claimed that the Google Play policy team reviewed the app and affirmed its privacy-focused approach, granting it a special permission reserved for apps that meet high privacy standards.
Addressing the third allegation, it said it is “totally false, incorrect and erroneous” because “no data of users is shared with any third parties, including advertisers, and no tracking cookies or analytics are used” by them.
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