Last Updated on 2025 年 12 月 5 日 by 総合編集組
Taiwan Officially Blocks Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book) for One Year: 1,706 Fraud Cases and National Security Concerns Trigger Historic Ban
On December 4, 2025, Taiwan’s Ministry of the Interior and Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) held a joint press conference announcing an immediate one-year block of the Chinese social commerce app Xiaohongshu (also known as Little Red Book or REDnote) across all Taiwanese networks. This marks the most severe regulatory action ever taken against a single foreign app in Taiwan.
Key Statistics Behind the Decision
- Total fraud cases linked to Xiaohongshu in Taiwan (2024–2025): 1,706 cases
- Total financial losses: NT$247.68 million (approximately US$7.6 million)
- 2024 alone: 950 cases causing NT$132.9 million in damages
- Jan–Nov 2025: 756 cases with damages rising to NT$114.77 million
- Active users in Taiwan: Over 3 million, with more than 1.27 million new downloads in the past year
- National Security Bureau cybersecurity audit: All 15 tested items failed, including excessive collection of location data, contacts, clipboard content, screenshots, and storage access.
Top 5 Fraud Patterns Identified by Taiwan Police
- Fake online shopping & investment scams
- “Cancel installment payment” phishing
- Romance scams leading to cryptocurrency or gambling platforms
- Fake escort/sex service prepayment fraud
- Impersonation of Xiaohongshu customer service
52 Days of Silence Became the Final Trigger On October 14, 2025, Taiwan authorities sent an official letter via the Straits Exchange Foundation to Xiaohongshu’s parent company (Xingyin Information Technology Shanghai Co.) demanding concrete improvements and legal representation in Taiwan within 20 days. As of December 4, the company had provided zero response—a situation described by officials as “unprecedented” among major global platforms.
How the Block Works Technically Taiwan’s ISP providers are progressively blocking thousands of Xiaohongshu-related IP addresses. Users will experience gradual degradation: endless loading circles, failed image loading, and eventually complete inability to connect. While VPNs can bypass the restriction, authorities strongly discourage their use.
International Precedents
- Texas, USA: Banned Xiaohongshu on state government devices in February 2025
- Maryland: Followed with similar restrictions
- China’s own Cyberspace Administration: Fined Xiaohongshu in September 2025 for failing content moderation duties
Public Reaction in Taiwan – Clearly Divided Supporters praise the move as necessary protection of citizens’ property and data sovereignty. Many victims who lost life savings welcomed the decision. Opponents, especially younger users (18–35 female demographic), expressed frustration over lost years of content, followers, and business opportunities. Small Taiwanese merchants who sold directly to mainland Chinese consumers via the platform face immediate revenue collapse.
Conditions for Lifting the Ban Early The one-year period is not set in stone. The government stated the block could be shortened if Xiaohongshu fulfills three requirements:
- Provide formal response and improvement plan
- Establish legal representation in Taiwan and accept local jurisdiction
- Pass re-examination of the 15 cybersecurity items and significantly reduce fraud incidents
Legal Basis The action is grounded in Article 42 of Taiwan’s “Anti-Fraud Act” under emergency provisions, the same mechanism used to block over 45,000 fraudulent websites in 2025 alone (95% hosted overseas).
Comparison with Other Global Platforms Meta (Facebook), Google, LINE, and TikTok all maintain legal representatives in Taiwan and have rapidly cooperated when fraud issues arose. Facebook, for example, responded within minutes to hours and developed its own anti-fraud AI after government requests.
What’s Next for the 3 Million Affected Users? Popular migration destinations include Instagram, Lemon8, Threads, and personal blogs. Creators are urged to back up content immediately while access is still partially available.
Broader Implications This ban signals Taiwan’s determination to enforce digital sovereignty. Any foreign platform operating in Taiwan without local legal accountability now faces the real risk of similar measures. The era of “legal vacuum” for Chinese-made apps with massive Taiwanese user bases appears to be ending.
