Hundreds of thousands of people took part in the October 17 demonstrations, including students and unions. Violence and looting occurred at the margins of the protests, with more than 1,800 arrests reported.
On October 19, former prime minister and presidential candidate Gabriel Attal called for the government to have powers to temporarily block social media in specific areas experiencing riots.
Just two days afterward, from around 11:20 a.m. until roughly 9 p.m., Orange and Sosh mobile service became largely inoperable. That nearly ten-hour disruption on October 21 could have affected millions of subscribers.
How Bitchat sends messages without internet access
Bitchat uses Bluetooth mesh networking to pass messages between nearby phones without an internet connection, accounts or phone numbers. Each participating device acts as both a messaging client and a relay for other devices.
Its theoretical multi-hop range is about 300 meters, with denser crowds improving performance. A public #mesh channel is readable by nearby people using the app, while private messages use end-to-end encryption through the Noise Protocol Framework.
The app also supports communication beyond the local mesh when an internet connection is available. It can use the Nostr protocol for longer-range messaging or geographically based channels.
Android users can share the app itself directly between devices, without an internet connection or access to an app store. Those offline capabilities distinguish the tool behind Bitchat’s rise in France from messaging services that require an online connection.
French officials considered targeted social media restrictions
French officials discussed temporary, localized platform blocks. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said any suspension would have to meet the strict conditions established by the Conseil d’État.
Speaking to the French Senate, Nuñez said that “social networks have become a real problem.” He acknowledged the possibility of suspending platforms used to coordinate looting, while stressing the legal requirements for such action.
Attal argued that online images of friends taking part in looting encouraged other young people to join. He also pointed to his 2024 decision to block TikTok in New Caledonia—a measure that France’s highest administrative court later ruled was a disproportionate infringement of rights and freedoms.
That ruling and provisions in the EU’s Digital Services Act provide legal constraints on broad social media blocking in France.
Bitchat itself has faced government demands affecting its availability elsewhere. Apple removed it from the Chinese App Store at the request of the Cyberspace Administration. India also demanded its removal from both the App Store and Google Play after a summer increase in activity during protests.
In both cases, Apple said apps must comply with the legal requirements of every jurisdiction in which they are available.
Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.
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