Users can post opinions on Koo publicly with a character limit of 400 and follow other users as well. India slammed international celebrities on Wednesday for making comments in support of protesting farmers as inaccurate and irresponsible and said vested interest groups were trying to build opinion against the country. For years, Twitter has been a major public communication tool for the Indian government. Downloads of Koo app surged 10-fold this week. Calling it Twitter-like automatically gives us an idea of the Koo app features. It’s known that the app has a Chinese investor, which according to the co-founder Radhakrishna, will be exiting the company soon. The Koo app came out of the Atmanirbhar App Innovation Challenge hosted by the Indian government last year and it was declared the winner in its category. Aditya likes to cover topics related to Microsoft, Windows 10, Apple Watch, and interesting gadgets. Image: Reuters. Koo App enables users to write opinions on anything using text, audio, or video. The app also allows automatic translation from English to local languages. Users can post their thoughts in 350 characters, for starters, which is a little higher than the 280 characters limit Twitter has in place. "We had two million users with about 1.5 million active users. They are also the creators of the Vokal app that acts as a homemade replacement to Quora. The microblogging platform has been in existence for a few months now. Calling it Twitter-like automatically gives us an idea of the Koo app features. There is a surge at an unexpected time and lots of people are talking about us.". All the Koo App users can share various posts, audio, video, photos on it Like Twitter, Koo also allows Direct Messages to be used by its users One can … The app also allows users to 're-koo', Koo's version of a retweet and chat instead of a direct message. Android and iOS users can head over to the respective app stores and download the Koo app. What is Koo app? Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is yet to join Koo, spoke about the app last year in his monthly radio address. The latest personal updates and opinion sharing micro-blogging platform of India is known as Koo. It raised more than $4 million in funding last week from new and existing investors including venture capital firms Accel and 3one4 Capital. rights reserved. It was co-founded by … Ban Twitter trends as many users move to Made in India Koo app News #BanTwitter trends on Twitter as users move to Koo, the Made in India app, available on both Google Play Store and Apple App … Photograph:( Hence, many would want to know what data is collected by the Koo app if they use this Indian Twitter alternative. However, the app sells itself by emphasizing that it supports various native languages, including Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Telugu. This comes after Twitter didn’t respond to the government’s notice of removing over 200+ tweets related to the ongoing farmer protests and deletion of around 1000 accounts flagged by national security agencies. One thing to note is that the app is a newbie, and you might find some options and features that seem half-baked. New Delhi: A French hacker has claimed that data of Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Niti Aayog and Republic TV on Koo — the new, homegrown social media app that has grabbed headlines in India — could be at risk of being leaked. The social media app has been created by the developer duo Mayank Bidwatka and Aprameya Radhakrishna. The social media app is currently available for Android and iOS and can be download from Google Play and App Store. Koo app, which is being called the Indian alternative of Twitter has been found to leak a lot of sensitive user data, including email ID, phone numbers and date of birth, French cybersecurity researcher Robert Baptiste tweeted after using the app. Koo is however still dwarfed by Twitter, which had 17.5 million users in India as of last month, its third-highest user base after the United States and Japan, according to German database firm Statista. "It's called Koo," he said. Privacy talks are all over these days. Koo has a yellow bird as its logo in contrast to the blue bird of Twitter. Users can follow each other, conduct polls and share photos, audio, video on Koo. Koo said downloads had surged 10-fold in the past two days to over 3 million. According to the App privacy labels on iOS App Store, Koo might collect data including Contacts, Location, Contact Info, Search History, User Content (photos/videos), etc., which are linked to a user’s identity. You must have read the news that more users including celebrities and politicians have started flocking in on the made in India Twitter alternative Koo. Koo is a microblogging platform that enables it users to express their opinion on any given subject. The app also allows users to 're-koo', Koo's version of a retweet and chat instead of a direct message. The app was launched in March 2020 and won a government award for driving tech innovation. The app was developed by Aprameya Radhakrishna, who is the co-founder and CEO. "In this, we can place our opinion and interact in our mother tongue through text, video or audio.". You can also send DMs and chat with each other. 5 Things To Know About This Indian Twitter Alternative, What Is Sandes? Koo co-founder Mayank Bidawataka said, “We had two million users with about 1.5 million active users. Koo was started as a new project by Radhakrishna in March 2020 and, prior to that, he largely focused on his Quora-like platform named Vokal, which has about 25 million monthly active users. Given the uncertainty over Twitter's future operations in India, it is looking at the possibility of taking over a much larger user base, in case the California-based company meets the same fate as TikTok. When a user sets up a profile on Koo app, information such as email, mobile, gender, marital status is voluntary. The Koo app is the Indian alternative app to the popular microblogging site Twitter. Surprisingly, the app even mentions some names on its Google Play product page. © 1998-2019 Zee Media Corporation Ltd (An Essel Group Company), All Koo is available for download on both Google Play Store and Apple App Store. What Is Dogecoin Cryptocurrency And Why Should You Care? What is Koo app? Koo, founded by Aprameya Radhakrishna and Mayank Bidawatka, was launched last year to allow users to express themselves and engage on the platform in Indian languages. Indian officials last week demanded that Twitter block hundreds of users that have tweeted on demonstrations against proposed new agriculture laws, saying they were a "grave threat to public order". Users can also visit the website and click on the Google Play or App Store download options to be redirected to a download link, the Zee Media Bureau reported. The duo are also the founders of Vokal, an audio-video knowledge-sharing platform similar to Quora. Radhakrishna posted a hiring alert for engineers on LinkedIn on Wednesday. It might also collect user content and diagnostics information, but it won’t be linked to the user. Launched in March 2020, Koo, is a social media app developed by Bengaluru-based Bombinate Technologies Private Limited as India's answer to Twitter. Apparently, the follow button is probably the most visible thing on the entire platform, which is kind of understood. The Electronics and IT ministry tweeted a link to its profile on rival Indian social network platform Koo. You can also use Koo’s web version by opening its website in your browser. Required fields are marked *. Radhakrishna also contradicted Anderson’s claims and said that “the data visible is something that the user has voluntarily shown on their profile of Koo.” Anderson further responded by calling Radhakrishna’s claims “a lie.”, Your email address will not be published. Koo is similar to Twitter but has some additional features. Twitter has updated in a blog post that it deleted 500 accounts engaged in examples of platform manipulation and spam. Koo, which has startling similarities with Twitter, now has over three million users. Only a valid mobile phone number is required to create an account. The sudden increase in Koo's popularity can be compared in some respects to the surge in the use of digital payments apps in India following a ban on high-value currency notes in late 2016, Koo's co-founder Bidawatka said. It supports images, videos, and audio content as well. It allows users to write opinions on anything using text, audio, or video. Reach out at. While there have been false allegations of a data leak, it's just commonly called the public profile page for all users to view!” Twitter has locked horns with New Delhi this month over the order to remove more than 1,100 accounts and posts which the government says are spreading misinformation about farmer protests against new agricultural laws. It offers users to either convey thoughts in 400 characters or a one-minute video. Like Twitter, Koo's logo is a bird, though yellow in colour. Koo is available on both Google Play Store as well as Apple App Store. Koo is a Bengaluru-based microblogging mobile application which is known to be an Indian alternative to Twitter. The duo are also the founders of Vokal, an audio-video knowledge-sharing platform similar to Quora. The app also allows users to 're-koo', Koo's version of a retweet and chat instead of a direct message. Some local personalities including Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal have opened Koo accounts. Your email address will not be published. ), Twitter has locked horns with New Delhi this month over the order to remove more than 1,100 accounts and posts which the government says are spreading misinformation about farmer protests against new agricultural laws. Koo was founded by Aprameya Radhakrishna and Mayank Bidawatka, both MBA, or business management, graduates. A text post is restricted to 400 characters and the service supports six Indian languages, including English. Radhakrishna confirmed that the Made-in-India Koo app will soon get rid of its Chinese investor. Latest Technology News That's what's displayed everywhere across the platform. Reuters How did it start? Koo was founded by Aprameya Radhakrishna and Mayank Bidawatka, both MBA, or business management, graduates. India made app Koo, an alternative to Twitter, has recorded a massive surge in the number of users owing to a spat between the Centre and Twitter. People can join the service to talk about various subjects and express their opinions on posts by other users. What is Koo app? Unlike Twitter, Koo registers users through OTP based on mobile number. A feed shows posts from other users. The Indian Twitter alternative displays patriotism in full pride, for example, by including the national tricolor on its launch screen. However, the popular white-hat hacker who goes by the name Elliot Anderson has claimed in a series of tweets that the Koo app is leaking personal information of the users such as name, birth date, email, etc. Koo app founder Aprameya Radhakrishna, during an interview, has brushed aside criticism over links with China. If you visit a user profile you can see it anyway,” Koo app’s founder and CEO Aprameya Radhakrishna tweeted. The Koo app provides microblogging services just like Twitter where users can share their thoughts and opinions through 'koos.' Government of India vs Twitter Explained: That Escalated Quickly! Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. What Is Koo? Koo said, “Users enter their profile data on the app to be shared with others on the platform. Can this made in India app compete with Twitter? US singer Rihanna, climate change activist Greta Thunberg and US lawyer and activist Meena Harris, the niece of Vice-President Kamala Harris, made comments on social media regarding the farmers protest. Also Read | Koo: All you need to know about this 'desi' Twitter He also shared some screenshots suggesting that the app has Chinese connections. Indian social-media app Koo is witnessing a surge in popularity, fuelled by politicians and others flocking to it after US rival Twitter Inc refused to follow a government order to block certain content on its platform. It even uses an animated yellow bird as its mascot, hinting that Koo is indeed a Twitter alternative. Koo is a Twitter-like microblogging platform which allows users to post multimedia content, including audio clips. Meanwhile, #kooapp was the top Twitter trend in India on Wednesday with nearly 21,000 posts, followed by #BanTwitter. Reports suggest the government might take further actions against Twitter in an attempt to get its orders followed. Koo App is Indian version of Twitter. Indian Government’s Desi WhatsApp Alternative. The technology ministry and trade minister Piyush Goyal joined this month. Downloads of Koo app surged 10-fold this week. But when he is not working, you can find him binge-watching random videos on YouTube (after he has wasted an hour on Netflix trying to find a good show). In August 2020, the … Koo is a similar platform as Twitter where users can express their opinions, though it is being marketed as India's answer to Twitter for non-English users. One can also post audio or video-based posts. The app is leaking personal data of its users: email, dob, name, marital status, gender.” Also Read - As #BanTwitter trends and Koo app gets popular, will Twitter get banned in India? The made-in-India app also supports several Indian languages. Twitter logo is seen on smartphone in front of displayed Koo app logo in this illustration Also, they have previously founded and invested in several startups. Koo has a yellow bird as its logo in … It allows users to use hashtags (#) or the "@" symbol for mentions. As of now, no data breach related to the Koo app has been reported. Besides, there are voice and video features for users who do not want to type, and users can upload longer videos — up to 10 minutes. Koo, which has startling similarities with Twitter, now has over three million users. A user either conveys thoughts in 400 characters or a one-minute video. One of the biggest highlights of the platform is that users can choose from various local languages to communicate their thoughts. Of course, you can follow other users on the platform to get updates and grow your follower base. The reaction from the Koo founder came after social media users started raising questions over the app's Chinese connection. New Delhi: The co-founder of Koo app said on Thursday that sensitive user details allegedly leaked from the platform are in fact data that users have voluntarily shared on their profiles. Koo - currently having 3 million users and counting - might not just be an alternative for right-wing users leaving Twitter. It has a 400-character text limit, against Twitter’s 280. The app is named “Koo: Connect with Indians in Indian Languages” on Google PlayStore, while it is named "Koo" on the App Store. Now, we have now crossed 3 … Tesla CEO Elon Musk asks Russian President Vladimir Putin to join Clubhouse app, 'I'm an alien': Musk says in response to question from Cred founder Kunal Shah, Clubhouse is reviewing data protection practices after concerns over security flaws, Volkswagen signs deal with Microsoft to develop self-driving vehicles. Your Browser’s Favicons Could Be Used To Track You Online: Here’s How. “It cannot be termed a data leak. It is an alternative to Twitter for the Indian users and discussions in this platform are similar to that of Twitter: around interesting topics. Various famous Indian figures and politicians have revealed on Twitter that they are now migrating to the home-baked microblogging platform. Also, you get Twitter-like buttons for liking, commenting, and resharing (read retweeting) other users’ content on the platform. But several ministries and high-profile figures, including Bollywood actors, have also gradually begun using Koo in recent months. "Before rushing to comment on such matters, we would urge that the facts be ascertained, and a proper understanding of the issues at hand be undertaken," the Indian foreign ministry said. So, let’s answer several questions like how the Koo app came into existence and who created it. Koo is a microblogging platform which offers a Twitter-like experience to the users. 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