Apple takes down ICE official monitoring apps
The company has pulled apps that allowed users to report observations of agents from the immigration enforcement agency.
The company stated it had eliminated the tracking application from its App Store after law enforcement alerted them about potential "safety risks" linked to this software and "comparable applications".
Per a announcement provided to media organizations, the top law enforcement official Pam Bondi had "demanded" the app's removal stating it was "developed to place immigration agents at risk".
The programmer countered that such allegations were "patently false" and accused the company of "giving in to an oppressive government".
Context of the Debated App
The application is one of several applications released this year in reaction to increased border control activities across the US.
Opponents - like the maker of the app - allege the government of exploiting its influence and "spreading fear" to US streets.
The free software works by showing the movements of immigration officers. It has been installed over a million times in the America.
Safety Concerns
Nevertheless, law enforcement argued it was being utilized to focus on enforcement personnel, with the federal investigators stating that the individual who assaulted an immigration center in the city in last month - murdering two persons - had utilized comparable applications to monitor the movements of agents and their cars.
According to their announcement, the company said: "We created the application marketplace to be a safe and trusted place to discover apps.
"Based on data we've obtained from police about the potential dangers associated with this application, we have removed it and similar apps from the App Store."
Programmer's Position
But its maker, Joshua Aaron, refuted it created a danger.
"The software is similar to crowdsourcing traffic enforcement, which all major navigation app, including the company's proprietary navigation software," he stated.
"This constitutes protected speech under the constitutional protection of the United States Constitution."
Joshua Aaron - who has had experience in the software field for many years - earlier mentioned he created the application out of anxiety over a spike in enforcement operations.
"I closely monitored pretty closely during the prior leadership and then I heard the discourse during the campaign for the current," he explained.
"I started thinking about what was going to happen and what I could do to keep people safe."
Administration Position
The executive branch and federal law enforcement had denounced the application after it debuted in spring and downloads grew.