Apple removes apps aiding protests: Difference between revisions
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Apple has removed several apps from the App Store that were used to organize anti-government protests. In 2019, following criticism from the Chinese state newspaper, Apple removed HKmap.live, an app that allowed users to view the location of protests, police sightings, and tear gas incidents on a live map.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mihalcik |first=Carrie |date=2019-10-10 |title=Apple pulls HKmap.live app used in Hong Kong protests |url=https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/apple-pulls-hkmap-live-app-used-in-hong-kong-protests/ |url-status=live |access-date=2025-12-03 |website=CNET}}</ref> In 2021, Apple removed Navalny, used to coordinate protest voting, after threats were made to prosecute Russian Apple employees.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Troianovski |first=Anton |last2=Satariano |first2=Adam |date=2021-09-17 |title=Google and Apple, Under Pressure From Russia, Remove Voting App |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/17/world/europe/russia-navalny-app-election.html |access-date=2025-12-02 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> In October 2025, Apple removed ICEBlock, an app used to locate and report the presence of immigration officers, as well as other similar apps following a request by the DOJ.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Oliver |first=Ashley |date=2025-10-02 |title=Apple takes down ICE tracking apps after pressure from Bondi DOJ |url=https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/apple-takes-down-ice-tracking-app-after-pressure-from-ag-bondi |access-date=2025-12-02 |website=Fox Business}}</ref> | |||
==HKmap.live== | ==HKmap.live== | ||
===Background=== | ===Background=== | ||
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===Removal=== | ===Removal=== | ||
Apple pulled down the app after the Hong Kong Cybersecurity and Technology Crime Bureau (CSTCB) “verified” with Apple that it was used to “target and ambush police, threaten public safety, and criminals have used it to victimize | Apple pulled down the app after the Hong Kong Cybersecurity and Technology Crime Bureau (CSTCB) “verified” with Apple that it was used to “target and ambush police, threaten public safety, and criminals have used it to victimize residents", although no information on these claims have been provided to the public.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2025-12-02 |title=Apple removes police-tracking app used in Hong Kong protests from its app store |url=https://hksar.org/apple-removes-police-tracking-app-used-in-hong-kong-protests-from-its-app-store |access-date=2025-12-02 |website=Hong Kong News}}</ref> | ||
A case for a potential conflict of interest can be made | A case for a potential conflict of interest can be made, as most of Apple’s assembly being in China.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nicas |first=Jack |date=2019-10-09 |title=Apple Removes App That Helps Hong Kong Protesters Track the Police |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/09/technology/apple-hong-kong-app.html |access-date=2025-12-02 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> | ||
==Navalny== | ==Navalny== | ||
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===Removal=== | ===Removal=== | ||
ICEBlock and other similar apps in America after request by the DOJ as directed by Pam | ICEBlock and other similar apps in America after request by the DOJ as directed by Attorney General Pam Bondi. "We reached out to Apple today demanding they remove the ICEBlock app from their App Store — and Apple did so," Bondi is quoted as saying to Fox News Digital.<ref name=":2" /> Information on what was said in the request is not publicly known. Further information is being requested by the Electronic Frontier Foundation.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-20 |title=EFF Demands Answers About ICE-Spotting App Takedowns |url=https://www.eff.org/press/releases/eff-demands-answers-about-ice-spotting-app-takedowns |access-date=2025-12-02 |website=Electronic Frontier Foundation}}</ref> | ||
ICEBlock’s creator, Joshua Aaron, pointed out how “ICEBlock… functions like other mapping applications that use crowd sourcing for speed traps”.<ref name=":2" /> | ICEBlock’s creator, Joshua Aaron, pointed out how “ICEBlock… functions like other mapping applications that use crowd sourcing for speed traps”.<ref name=":2" /> | ||