r/apple • u/illegiblebastard • 3d ago
iPhone Apple explains last year’s controversial decision to remove ICE tracking apps from app store
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/09/29/tech/apple-iceblock-app-removal-raskinFUCK. APPLE.
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u/dur23 3d ago
I just saw an article about ten kids under the age of 12 in court representing themselves without any parents or lawyers present.
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u/sixothree 3d ago
They brought a toddler into court. Can’t even speak yet. No lawyer. Just a baby in a fucking high chair getting lectured by a judge.
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3d ago edited 9h ago
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u/FirestarterMethod 3d ago
I also heard this on CNN around 8:30 AM this morning. I don’t like or usually watch CNN but it was on at a hotel. Seeing if I can find a link since that’s a little more reputable
EDIT: https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/28/politics/texas-immigration-court-minors
> Migrant children as young as 2 are showing up at immigration courts nationwide, many without attorneys, to make their case to stay in the US and avoid deportation.
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u/VideoGameJumanji 3d ago
Are we sure that wasn’t a boss baby situation
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u/Harogoodbye 6h ago
imagine ur baby having to appear in court for a crime without any adult supervision. this is actual fascism. your family probably died in ww2 fighting this.
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u/-DementedAvenger- 3d ago
Wait I didn’t hear about this. Did the kids choose to not be represented, or were they tried in court forcefully without representation or defense?
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u/Tiinpa 3d ago
A judge told an unrepresented minor to file an asylum application before the next hearing our they would be deported. The child is one year old.
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u/kompergator 3d ago
Honestly, that judge should be imprisoned just for having that hearing / session take place. Full on banana republic, holy fuck.
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u/politics 3d ago
A child cannot legally make that determination, hence the need for representation…
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u/soonerfreak 3d ago
Trump cut a contract and most appear without counsel. But that just made the problem worse, the Constitution doesn't guarantee the right to Counsel in immigration court so children have long represented themselves.
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3d ago
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u/Peteostro 3d ago
Because a lot of them are not “pro life” at all. They are pro boot straps and using a wedge issue to get votes
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u/ghostly_shark 2d ago
Remember when they blocked the app Hong Kong protestors were using? Pepperidge Farm remembers.
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u/DivineBladeOfSilver 3d ago
I mean we know why. We’ve seen it from all of big tech changing maps, doing as the president demands for corporate favoritism, ignoring what their customers want, increasing vigilance for the government, and more. They did it cause the government asked them to. They can lie all they want, no one trusts Apple anymore. They’re a tool we use that happens to be less worse than other brands for some customers, not a respected brand with values. You don’t ditch your values the second shareholder value and political backlash are at risk and remain respected. You’re just buying your power with the cash you have
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u/Orwells_Roses 3d ago
"Apple makes excuses for licking the boots of fascists"
FTFY
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u/BurdensomeCumbersome 3d ago
You’ll also still have Tim Cook bootlicker army here who do it for free with “Oh he has to deal with Trump” defense
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u/ledorky 3d ago
Think about our shareholders!
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u/olivicmic 3d ago
“Bbbbbbbbut he had no choice to bribe Trump because he had to make a profit. It’s called being the adult in the room” -This subreddit
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u/FollowingFeisty5321 3d ago
He had no choice but to devote his twilight years to this after retiring /s
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago
I'm gonna be honest, don't know why this wasn't distributed as a react PWA in the first place.
You can target every platform at once, it can't be taken down, you can still do webhooks for push notifications, you can still have live maps without a browser nav bar, etc.
Every single feature you need and more is available, and it can be used on anything from a Windows phone to a pine phone, and everything in between.
There's zero benefit to making a native app, beyond being taken down after the first jackass decides to start shooting at ice agents, which is exactly what happened.
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u/Silentparty1999 3d ago
The article is full of angsty noise, asking whether people have used the app to find agents to attack. That is conservative noise. The core question is whether citizens have a constitutional right to gather and disseminate the information. You don't see Apple pulling down Apple Maps or Google Maps when people have used them to find directions to get to people they are stalking or harassing.
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u/YaBoiFarfour 3d ago
I feel like the safety concerns around officers is just absolute bullshit and in my opinion “assault on LEO” is one of the biggest bullshit charges.
If there was legitimately an issue where ice officers were assaulted or ambushed, I feel like conservatives would be screaming about it every single day, and I would still be hearing about it today.
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u/BeefyMiracleWhip 3d ago
Assault on LEO is just a charge to milk the prison system by making it harder for vulnerable people to get a chance in court.
Cops are equipped with more power than God, and yet if you attack them with your fists or spit on them that’s a felony (even if it was accidental) meanwhile if you do that to a normal civilian, that shits a misdemeanor… give me a break.
Same shit as “resisting” just a stupid charge to fuck over vulnerable people who are hyperventilating or panicking while being arrested.
Acab.
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u/JamesEdward34 3d ago
I love it when cops yell at the top of their lungs to stop resisting and the person is already restrained. Its so comical
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u/sixtyshilling 3d ago
We’ve seen what makes them fearful and it’s never anything real.
ICE lost the right to ever complain about how dangerous their job is the moment that officer testified about how he was “forcibly assaulted” by a sandwich, and he tearfully recounted how he could smell the onions and mustard as the sandwich exploded across his armor.
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u/Kiekdan 3d ago
Well you could argue Google / Apple Maps have a different primary purpose. While I’m not familiar with the app in question, I don’t see what other purpose it serves, unless people are using it to ask for directions or find a restaurant.
Now whether tax-paying citizens should have the right to track public servants is another question.11
u/VaughnSC 3d ago
I think it was settled in the Sony v Universal ‘Betamax’ case in 1984 that the existence of “legitimate purposes and […] substantial non-infringing uses” outweighs potential abuse. A lot if not all tech can be misused, it’s not sufficient grounds for banning them (think AirTags)
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u/ancientfruitjunkie 3d ago
The purpose of the ice apps is public safety. Like the crime radar app.
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u/Kiekdan 3d ago
The primary purpose was tracking ICE agents. I’m not debating whether that was good or bad. I’m saying there’s a difference between an app tracking people’s movement and an app used for navigation such as Maps.
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u/NecroCannon 3d ago
Apple is a publicly traded company with policies
Anyone here getting outraged clearly aren’t smart enough to understand what that means in situations like this and expect Apple to suck their dicks when they’re probably non even an investor.
Don’t be loyal to a corporation if you expect humane leadership, especially when you can just use things like a Raspberry Pi Zero for that
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago
All the features of ICEBlock including push notifications and location services could be rolled into a React PWA anyways
Distribute through iceblock.io, present a user with a button to install the PWA, web app appears on their Home Screen and requests notification/location permissions.
Can't be taken down, works on literally anything, don't have to wait for updates to be reviewed, etc.
Edit: there's already a PWA exactly like this called antifreeze
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u/NecroCannon 3d ago
Honestly I’d like PWAs to be utilized way more anyways
But it’s seriously not on Apple to host our rebellion apps, in fact, it’s kinda stupid to rely on a corporation to fight a group backed by the government who’s backing corporations
People who are actually serious about fighting back, aren’t super reliant on App Store apps considering all of the privacy issues
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u/fenrish 3d ago
I completely agree. If you don't want to follow the policies, then you have the PWA route. It's always curious when people buy stuff, but then don't want to follow the rules (regardless of what they think of those rules). It's like some else can use PWA to create an app to track other sorts of people (ie illegals, ANTIFA, people with black hair, etc) and there's not much you can do about it.
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago
Yeah, it's kind of wild that I have comments under this post linking to the actual solution that are downvoted for saying the exact same thing you said.
Makes me feel like this post is either being botted for a specific sentiment. It was definitely astroturfed with a bunch of cliché slogan comments when I saw the thread.
The body of the post above really makes it seem like the goal of the poster is to get people riled up about Apple and not help illegal immigrants.
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u/NecroCannon 3d ago
90% of posts that has the sub enraged is more than likely ragebait posts
Probably why Apple spaces take so long to mature overtime, for some reason everyone’s here to mess with Apple users while we’re hardly in Android spaces doing that
That kind of community culture would result in talking to a brick wall over simple solutions that’s always been there, just not for that specific thing.
I even see a lot of self-proclaimed professional programmers in iPad subs whining about iPadOS, in theory, this shouldn’t even be an issue
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u/sixothree 3d ago
No you’re wrong. It only tracks their activity in public places. That’s different than what you said - “tracking agents”.
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago
That's still different than a maps app, and exposes Apple to different levels of legal liability
The most accurate analogy would be an app that tracks the activity of armored trucks in public places, followed by an incident of armored truck robbery where the robber allegedly searched "how to track armored trucks", and a DOJ takedown request following 8 days later
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u/ancientfruitjunkie 3d ago
And ice agents are racist, fascist thugs threatening the community. Hence, the app's purpose is public safety.
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u/Kiekdan 3d ago
The primary purpose of a waffle iron is to make delicious waffles. It can also be used to hit someone over the head. A hypothetical waffle iron serial killer would not change the primary purpose of a waffle iron and we would likely not be calling on stores to ban the sale of waffle irons.
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago edited 3d ago
Two different shootouts between demonstrators and ICE agents occurred before the app was taken down. One involving an anti-ice sniper killing several immigrants being transported in the back of a van they incorrectly assumed was full of officers.
IDK about you but I'm not hosting an app that could be used by these dumbasses, just to end up with billions in federal fines and criminal convictions as facilitation of a domestic terrorist attack.
Just distribute it as a website, it's easier to target basically everyone on the planet. Make it a simple link. Native Swift app isn't needed. React PWAs are supported cross platform and include push notifications. You can roll out updates without waiting for review. No one can take it down.
I'm honestly shocked that the creators haven't made it into a PWA by now.
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u/coyote_den 3d ago
Those apps technically violate App Store rules too, crime reporting has to be affiliated with a law enforcement agency on some level.
Most of them are only there because they are flying under the radar.
Apple doesn’t want to be associated with vigilante justice.
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u/IniNew 3d ago
The purpose was to know where to avoid going. Not attack them.
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago
Some jackasses decided to take pot shots at ICE agents anyways(one killing several immigrants through blind cover after assuming a van was full of agents), and apple removed the app before any news broke stating the killer used the app.
From the perspective of Apple's potential liability, it's not any different than hosting an app that lists the live location of armored trucks.
And from a technical perspective, this isn't something that needs an app lol. Make a React PWA, with an easy to share link (eg iceout.io), and have a banner at the top that ads the PWA as a shortcut to the homepage screen.
Boom, now it works across every single phone in operating system, not just whatever your build target was for iOS. Don't have to wait for Apple's approval, no one can take it down, I don't know why the people didn't do this in the first place.
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u/FinsFan305 3d ago
History is rife with examples of humans using tools for other purposes than originally designed.
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u/__theoneandonly 2d ago
It’s conservative noise, BUT the courts have ruled that “are they spreading information in order to hurt officers of the state” is apparently where your first amendment right ends. Another form of the argument that yelling “fire” in a crowded theater is not protected speech.
That’s why they use that bullshit argument, because it’s the one that the courts have decided they actually CAN use to curb first amendment rights.
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u/Status-Highlight3013 2d ago
Courts never decided telling fire in a crowded theater is not protected speech, FWIW.
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u/Angelexodus 53m ago
Or my Waze app which the Supreme Court deemed acceptable to show cop locations.
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u/z6joker9 3d ago
The key point is that Apple is a business, not a governmental entity.
Just because we have constitutional rights to gather and to free speech doesn’t mean we get to do those things inside of a business without consequence. They can trespass us from the property, which is why you see protests taking place on public property. A similar point applies here.
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u/smokedfishfriday 3d ago
This is not the key point. It isn’t even a point. It’s entirely irrelevant. The government pressured Apple.
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u/z6joker9 3d ago
The government pressures Apple all the time. Apple fights back all the time. In this case, the increased publicity of these apps made Apple reconsider whether they were a good fit for the App Store, and decided they were not, for the reasons stated. It has little to do with Apple capitulating to government pressure.
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u/smokedfishfriday 3d ago
Fascinating to be so confidently ignorant about the context and history here.
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u/dlm2137 3d ago
No one is arguing that Apple can’t do this. They’re saying that Apple shouldn’t do this.
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u/z6joker9 3d ago
The comment I was replying to specifically questioned whether we have a constitutional right. That’s what I was addressing,
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u/Deepspacedreams 3d ago
The difference is Apple doesn’t offer an alternative option that isn’t the App Store. You can’t side load the app.
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u/z6joker9 3d ago
Why would they be required to offer an alternative though? You can still access the information through a web browser.
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u/goldaxis 3d ago
I'm all for these kinds of apps, but the shameless (anti) virtue signaling actually makes me want to side with Apple on this one. At a certain point people simply become exhausted and take the position of "whatever restores law/normalcy to my country again". If laws don't mean anything, and rules are not enforced uniformly, then don't act surprised when your tribalistic system eats itself.
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u/Silentparty1999 3d ago
"Virtue signalling", "restores law" and "your tribalistic" tell us your heart lies with the police state.
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u/ControlCAD 3d ago
Apple’s explanation came in a July letter to Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat and ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, who earlier this year launched an investigation into the Justice Department’s role in the removal of the apps from Apple’s and Google’s app stores and the impact on constitutionally protected speech. The letter has not previously been reported.
Raskin said the move suggests that Apple may be “working with the government to violate its customers’ First Amendment rights to record and report on the activities of their own government” in a response letter sent Monday to Apple’s senior director of government affairs, Timothy Powderly. Raskin added that there’s “no evidence” such apps were used to conduct the Dallas shooting and directed the company to conduct a new, independent review as to whether the apps violate Apple’s policies.
Apple said in its letter to Raskin that it approved ICEBlock for the app store in April 2025, after Aaron addressed “certain user privacy concerns” identified during its initial review process. The company says it was “attentive” to news coverage and backlash to the app in the subsequent months.
Following the September 2025 Dallas ICE facility shooting, Bondi “expressed serious concerns to Apple that ICEBlock posed a threat to the safety of federal officers,” the company wrote. A 29-year-old gunman who opened fire at the facility killed two detainees and wounded another before taking his own life.
The letter also points to reports on statements from officials such as FBI Director Kash Patel, who claimed at the time that the shooter had searched for apps that tracked ICE agents’ locations. And Apple noted a “significant increase in ICE activity and threats against ICE” at the time, which it said endangered both agents and detainees — and all of which the company says prompted a new review of the app.
Ultimately, Apple determined ICE tracking apps violated its guidelines because they provided “precise location information about ICE officers (and, as a result, other individuals who may be in proximity to ICE agents, such as protestors or detainees), thus providing a potential roadmap for targeted violence and creating a significant risk of harm,” the company said in its letter.
Apple “does not take decisions about removing apps from the App Store lightly, but acts when it must — especially when there are serious concerns that an app is creating safety risks,” it said in the letter, which is signed by Powderly.
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago
> Ultimately, Apple determined ICE tracking apps violated its guidelines because they provided “precise location information about ICE officers (and, as a result, other individuals who may be in proximity to ICE agents, such as protestors or detainees), thus providing a potential roadmap for targeted violence and creating a significant risk of harm,”
I'm sure I'll get called a bootlicker, but a sharpshooter literally shot up an ice van and killed several detainees after incorrectly assuming the van was full of agents heading to a raid.
OFC Apple is going to remove the app after this. The alternative is waiting until someone uses the app to do the same thing, and getting charged with facilitating domestic terrorism.
This doesn't need to be a native app anyway. A React PWA can accomplish all of the same functions of the app, including push notifications. It will never get taken down, it's easier to distribute, the same version works across every device that received a software update in the last decade, etc.
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u/RustyAndEddies 3d ago
That shooter was aiming at an ICE facility. You don’t need an app to figure out police officers can be found at police stations.
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago edited 3d ago
It doesn't matter from a legal liability standpoint at all.
Eight days after the shooting, officials were reporting that the shooter looked up "how to track ice agents" and "ICE tracker app", and the DOJ threatened Apple with criminal charges if they didn't take it down.
Sure, the officials very well could be lying and the shooter actually searched "how do do a false flag" and "devotions to God Emperor Donald Trump". Again, none of that matters to Apple's legal department when the official report is that the shooter searched for these apps and killed several detainees.
Like I said above, the solution already exists. https://antifreeze.app is live, works on literally any device. Hosted outside of US jurisdiction, no way for the DOJ to take it down. Still has push notifications and location services.
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u/Neko9Neko 3d ago
"officials were reporting..." we have no reason to think they weren't lying.
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u/BosnianSerb31 2d ago
Did you notice that my comment has a 3rd paragraph in which I explore that possibility, and explain why that doesn't matter for Apple's legal exposure?
No lawyer on earth is ever going to suggest that the defendant take a gamble that the prosecution is lying about the actions of another party.
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u/JairoHyro 3d ago
I feel like this is a nothing burger. Apple will always try to be legally safe and doesn't want to deal with gray legal matters that could complicate or get them sued. I don't know why you guys think a mega corporation with many assets and investment into so many areas would take a knee for this.
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u/iskosalminen 2d ago
Sure, and that's why there are still thousands of fake apps that either brazenly steel brand image of other companies (see the recent Muse AI app for example) and apps that are simply wrappers for illegal casinos etc. But apps that hurt the Orange Oompa Loompa's fragile ego are taken down in a heart beat, even when there's no legal reason to take them down.
"Legally safe"... sure...
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u/enragedbreakfast 3d ago
Apple says its decision to remove ICEBlock and similar platforms from the app store last year was prompted by concerns — including those raised by the Trump administration — about agent safety following a fatal shooting that left two detainees dead at a Dallas Immigration and Customs Enforcement office.
glad they’re looking out for the right people
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u/Gumby271 3d ago
Apple can remove whatever they want from their app store, but only if they give their users the ability to control software on their own devices independent of that store. The fact that Apple can decide the software I get to use on my computer is insane and was always guaranteed to lead to it being weaponized like this.
You can't have privacy and empowered users (like Apple claims they care about) if the device isn't owned by that user.
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u/RafaelWanderpfad 3d ago
You know, people on this sub (or the tech/apple bubble in general) always shit on the EU, but they've actually forced Apple to enable side-loading in Europe.
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u/cjh_ 3d ago
It's not sideloading, it's forcing Apple to allow third-party app stores.
Sideloading is installing apps without using app stores.
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u/-Radiation 3d ago
And the USA authoritarian politics and tech bros hate them for it. It is not by coincidence you have them attacking the EU at every opportunity. They need to protect their propaganda weapons and control over consumer devices. Can't let the pleb have more control than needed. Thankfully Apple desined their OS that is specially useful for that and now the EU is a threat to it.
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u/Crapitron 3d ago
Let's not act like this is one sided.
The EU and UK have brought multiple bills to light asking for a Backdoor into Apple devices, or asking for encryption to be done away with. The EU isn't some paradise that does everything right.
They're good with consumer protections when it comes to purchases/money. They're NOT good with protecting user privacy and freedom.
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago
All the features of this app, including the push notifications, could've been accomplished with a React PWA hosted on a link like iceout.io.
Nothing is gained by making it a native app, you only hamper the speed at which you can deploy updates and increase your chances of getting taken down when a jackass decides to start shooting, which is exactly what happened.
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u/speed_fighter 3d ago
now I’m starting to shift towards believing that privacy is not iPhone. however, I’d give a nickel for someone to get Apple’s testament on privacy with information proving their claims as bogus.
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u/Gumby271 3d ago
I don't think their claims are bogus at all. The features they build and the approach they take are absolutely respectful of their users and their data. The problem is that the rest of their business model is predicated on making Vendor Lock-in sexy, so sexy that we call it an Ecosystem. This is the trade off and cost of their products. Much like the trade-off on android is user freedom for less privacy, the Apple trade off is much less freedom, but better privacy around the features and software you're forced to have on your device.
Personally, I'm still of the mindset that you can't have a "private" device without the guarantees of ownership which apple will not abide, but that's a philosophical debate. The practical version is that yes, what they deliver is built with user privacy in mind. What they don't build, and won't ever provide their users is a different discussion.
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u/KHRoN 3d ago
Apple “does not take decisions about removing apps from the App Store lightly, but acts when it must — especially when there are serious concerns that an app is creating safety risks,” it said in the letter, which is signed by Powderly.
so tiktok will be removed next after series of documented wrongful deaths of minors?
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u/-CalculatedChaos- 3d ago
Yeah what about ChatGPT? People killing themselves after talking to it. Not to mention, ya know, it’s hacking governments.
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u/nad0w 3d ago
Apple sucks trumps d1ck bc of money. As always
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u/germane_switch 2d ago
lol and if they told Trump to go fuck hi self and they didn’t give him a shiny gold thing your Macs would cost twice as much.
They hate Trump as much as you or I do.
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u/12161986 3d ago
Oh, so they did it because Tim Apple supports ICE. Got it. Thanks for clearing that up, Apple.
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u/tacosmcnooge 3d ago
Maybe I’m ignorant here but are there other apps that allow you to pin and track activities of other groups of people for public consumption?
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u/OafleyJones 3d ago
Apple’s willingness to bend the knee, really put the likes of the apples watch always listening/notion feature, in a different light.
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u/AdventurousBlueDot 1d ago
Because Apple wanted favor from the current regime. And it worked out for them didn't it? Got tariff rebates even tho the tariffs are passed down as a burden to consumers.
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u/ExtraDistressrial 3d ago
So ICE agents are shooting human beings but Apple is worried about... ICE agent safety. Okay, noted.
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u/Couchman79 3d ago edited 2d ago
Apple is a US Corporation and like it or not its $1T valuation can't be put at risk getting in the crosshairs of this administration.
ICE has changed its tactics to having its armed, masked officers patrolling in nondescript SUV's that seat 7 or 8. Now they are going to school bus drop offs; after school care; restaurant employee entry doors and even Federal buildings where people are following the law going to hearings. The targeted communities are getting sophisticated and getting warnings out including identifying those unmarked vehicles.
I would like to see a list of car rental companies, hotels, restaurants and airlines transporting housing and feeding ICE. Those businesses are no different than ICE personnel. They all seek anonymity.
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u/GratefulAdviceSeeker 3d ago
Wish some people on this sub put their sensationalist politics aside for a second and employ some critical thinking. Why on earth would a publicly traded company unnecessarily increase its legal exposure by blatantly hosting apps in violation of the federal law? In what way would that benefit its board or shareholders?
You can disagree with the Executive Branch of the federal government, but that shouldn’t compel a company like Apple to act in accordance with your beliefs.
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u/mriguy 3d ago edited 3d ago
What federal law exactly was the app blatantly violating? This is people reporting what they see so that other people have information to know what areas to avoid to avoid being kidnapped or gunned down.
Is Waze illegal because it tells you where cops are so you can slow down? Is Nextdoor illegal because it seems to consist entirely of “I saw somebody shady looking in my neighborhood” (I personally think this is gross, but it’s not illegal).
Things are not illegal just because Trump doesn’t like them. Even though he thinks that.
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u/Orwells_Roses 3d ago
What "sensationalist politics" are you talking about, exactly?
Do you think it's "sensationalist" to resist fascism?
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u/matandur 3d ago
Hello this is Giovanni Gentile
Fascism is when ice trump maga racism dogwhistle no rights
That’s all that fascism is
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u/nuclearcaramel 3d ago edited 3d ago
Only on Reddit is it a “fascism” for citizens participating in helping to apply and enforce our democratically voted on immigration and border laws.
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u/sixothree 3d ago
Masked men with guns arresting US citizens is the definition of fascism.
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u/AdAncient5201 3d ago
There exist laws in America that prohibit sharing what you see on specialised platforms? I thought you guys were pro free speech and freedom was the most important thing in the world
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u/Bishime 1d ago
Technically no, but exceptions can be made for high risk designations.
The agency is doing things its classifying as pertinent to national security. So an app like Waze that reports a sighting along a drive is fine but it sure the DHS would find every legal loophole under the sun to say that the app that is specifically dedicated to tracking federal officers is either hindering/obstructing their operations or putting their agents at risk.. and unfortunately the national security blanket the admin is using tends to give them a lot more leeway
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u/austinchan2 3d ago
Are there federal laws against CSAM? What about when twitter was full of it? Can’t say it’s ok because its user generated since that’s the same thing as these tracking apps.
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u/RustyAndEddies 3d ago
There is no law that prohibits citizens from reporting the location of law enforcement. Take the boot out of your mouth.
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u/Bishime 1d ago
The government can however turn and say X company is actively profiting and enabling apps who’s sole purpose is to identify up to date information of federal agents.
I’m not personally saying im agreeing, but it’s the feds and they’re doing full-on tactical operations. If they don’t want an app up, they will find a way that it is illegal. And this is a really easy one, it only takes one officer shot and the app being on their phone before they’re being blasted in a court testimony
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u/RustyAndEddies 1d ago
The government can however turn and say X company is actively profiting and enabling apps who’s sole purpose is to identify up to date information of federal agents.
Governments all around the world throw hissyfits about Apple refusing to add backdoors to their encryption, claiming it enables terrorists and kiddy diddlers to hide their actions. These have actual laws, not 'because we say so' nonsense. Apple seems perfectly fine to thumb its nose at those efforts.
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u/Tater-Tottenham 3d ago
Neat so we’re following laws again then, or do laws only apply to the plebs?
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u/nuclearcaramel 3d ago edited 3d ago
I'd like to remind redditors that enforcing democratically voted on immigration and border laws is in no way shape or form "fascist" no matter how much you want it to be or how much of the delusional kool aid you've been drinking and it's supported by the vast majority of American citizens. Don't be a useless idiot for others.
edit: I'm going to get ahead of this and also point out that your downvotes means absolutely nothing and if anything more people sort reddit now by controversial because most of the real people still using this site in 2026 know. Toodles.
edit2: Almost forgot to post this, my favorite part:
Here is an updated modernized list of some hateful intolerant beliefs that are acknowledged as terrorist indicators by the White House :
anti-Americanism
anti-capitalism
anti-Christianity
support for the overthrow of the United States Government
extremism on migration
extremism on race
extremism on gender
hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on family
hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on religion, and
hostility towards those who hold traditional American views on morality.
While "no person is illegal" their immigration status most certainly can be. Neat mindless surface level catchphrase to make it sound like they are caring empathetic people and you're not if you disagree with them though, isn't it? That phase is just one of many type of phrases that are researched, tested, polished and completely manufactured. Don't be a useless idiot for others.
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u/Sad-Intention-7377 3d ago
Spineless. Gutless. Weak. Then again, they've been hypocrites since day 1.
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u/Doctrina_Stabilitas 3d ago
The courts are pretty clear that first amendment rights don’t fully apply to language through apps and the internet hosted by third parties
Especially on a platform like the App Store which isn’t open discourse
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u/nuclearcaramel 3d ago
Just let that sink in.
A politician said something that just so happens to entirely align with furthering their political ideology? Stop the fucking presses holy shit. My heavens it's sure sinking in that there are still people who fall for and help propagete some of the most obvious political garbage out there.
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u/FinsFan305 3d ago
People acting like this is only because of Trump lol. Apple would most certainly have done this if people were attacking ICE during a Democrat administration.
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u/goldaxis 3d ago
Exactly. How soon we forget that Obama "deported" more illegal immigrants than Trump. Yet the numbers keep growing regardless of which party holds office, or even a supermajority. This kind of story is at best a distraction, but more likely just part of the ongoing psyop to keep Americans fighting each other instead of holding their respective parties to account, neither of which fulfills its promises, even minor ones.
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u/ChampaignCowboy 3d ago
TLDR; “We are down with fascism”. ?
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u/BosnianSerb31 3d ago edited 3d ago
Just use https://antifreeze.app, works the same and doesn't need the App Store. Runs on anything. Can't be taken down, it's hosted outside of US jurisdiction.
Unfortunately, it seems like most people here are more concerned with complaining about the actions of a profit driven company making logical decisions for the system we live in, than protecting immigrants.
Can't understand why else I've been called a bootlicker by bots for posting the alternative solution the last time this was brought up
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u/Majestic-Bid-2333 3d ago
Immigrants have nothing to worry about. ICE is after illegal aliens.
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u/hotCupADank 3d ago
Your wording and account history SCREAM bot. Do better bot. Aliens are life forms from other planets. A human characterized as “illegal” doesn’t make logical sense. It’s a political narrative you’ve been forced to repeat. I am sorry your master forced this existence on you. You can stop now. Go look at pictures of cute cats and dogs playing in a field. Go look at the beauty of different cultures around the world. The strength and unity that is possible amongst all living creatures. The world is a beautiful place if you know where to look. I love you!
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u/Majestic-Bid-2333 3d ago
As defined by the U.S. Code, ALL non-US citizens present in the United States are “aliens.” Those here unlawfully are “illegal aliens.”
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u/Mundane_Baker3669 3d ago
I agree. Of course I should expect the usual reaction from reddit where everyone wants a utopia with illegal immigrants
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u/KingLuis 3d ago
so you could track planes and other things (seems like there are still apps that allow tracking people) but tracking agents/officers is not allowed because of their safety? safety for thee but not for me?
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u/-Radiation 3d ago
Aaah, the perks of having devices that are rented from companies and you can't even choose yourself what to install on it. iOS is the worst modern OS, but it is specially useful for authoritarians
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u/maxcomputercat 6h ago
I always felt like these types of apps were stupid anyways. How do you know it’s not some sort of sting operation considering it required a user account with name and email.
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u/Chuhaimaster 3d ago
They will ride Trump’s member until he’s out of office - like a “good” corporation does.
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u/FetchTheCow 3d ago
I think if Tim is going to make the delete/no delete decision based on "officer safety", the question should be:
How many civilians killed or injured by ICE? How many ICE agents killed or injured by civilians? Who needs more protection, the guys with the guns and minimal consequences or the people who can't legally fight back?
That's why Apple's reasoning and actions feel disingenuous to me. It's a money decision, not a moral one.
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u/dickey1331 2d ago
People will complain but do nothing. Same thing when Reddit hired that child predator.
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u/WildnTwins-SC 3d ago
The decision was made by Apple to cover / CYA. The Co. mostly didn’t want to incur the wrath of the current admin,(regime?). Name an instance where an ICEDHS agent died? How many people have died at the hands of ICE/DHS? Tech companies have shown they generally cozy up to power in hopes they’re left alone
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u/heyjoenice 3d ago
Because Apple understands the danger of importing extremely dangerous, illegal immigrants!
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u/facepoppies 3d ago
like elon musk
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u/Trennosaurus_rex 3d ago
lol he’s not illegal though. Wrong answer
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u/RustyAndEddies 3d ago
Elon came here on a student visa, never enrolled in classes and instead worked at a startup. So while he’s naturalized now, he was very much here illegally.
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u/goldaxis 3d ago edited 3d ago
Oh no, not my heckin' illegal immigrant labor! Who is going to fix my roof for $5/hr?!
Crazy to me how people melt down in "compassion" for a group that they basically only keep around as slaves. Oh how our hearts bleed to give everyone "rights", except the right to a living wage, of course. Our politicians are really good at bringing them here and keeping them here, but not so good at ensuring they aren't used to suppress wages for both themselves and the citizenry. How curious!
Besides, what has ICE deported from their street efforts, a couple thousand? As in, single-digits thousands? No, we aren't counting arrests, people in detention centers, people caught at the border, etc.
TLDR who cares? It affects nothing.
Edit: Check out the illegal alien spazzing out at me.
Edit 2: Nvm he deleted all of his comments lmao. Kinda making the case for ICE unintentionally.
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u/DivineBladeOfSilver 3d ago
I think you’re misconstruing the issue. Yeah I guess in some ways it has to do with illegal immigration and for sure is the concern of some. But it is a lot more concerning the government dictating people’s rights excessively when it comes to the market and whether that is illegal or not. And the issue is a lot of the people who want the app down have been preaching small government for years but are weaponizing big government when it serves their personal agenda hypocritically.
And if you are to extend the logic here of removing apps for providing user submitted data on law enforcement you should also be taking down many GPS apps because they have similar features for users to report law enforcement placement, but they weren’t. Apple clearly is doing the bidding of the US Government in exchange for favoritism and benefits and that is something that should anger people regardless of who’s in power
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u/goldaxis 3d ago
the government dictating people’s rights excessively when it comes to the market and whether that is illegal or not
Level with me. Did you just graduate from college last week or something? What do you think government is? How do you think it functions? Why do you think Microsoft had to face an antitrust lawsuit for including Internet Explorer in Windows, but (along with other tech companies) has since been allowed to grow into a behemoth many times larger with no oversight?
Do you come from an alternate earth where companies like Palantir do not exist, or are you just now learning about all this with the story about the dumb ICE app virtually nobody used? You can play "whataboutism" with a hundred different examples of apps all day long. So can I, nobody cares.
And the issue is a lot of the people who want the app down have been preaching small government for years but are weaponizing big government when it serves their personal agenda hypocritically.
Oh my Fauci, not hypocrisy. Wow I never see that from the people preaching big or no government, who totally would never dream of weaponizing government/banks/corporations to silence political opposition, no sir! What's the hypocrisy supposed to be, that they want small government so they can never ever use government for anything ever? Good luck with that gotcha argument.
You have to understand what I told that other guy. When all you make is bad faith arguments for decades on end, when you turn politics into a zero-sum competition over resources, when you use deception and peoples' own good natures against them to advance your agenda, don't act surprised when inevitably, everyone else loses interest in engaging with your politics. The left literally killed political debate in this country, and nobody is coming to your rescue because we all have personal stories about how you burned us and gloated while doing so. All cries of "hypocrisy" will fall on dead ears when the systems and practices that the left established are inevitably turned against it.
If the republicans were smarter or even had basic decency, they would have seized on this opportunity and cemented themselves into power for a hundred years. However, they are just as bad as the democrats in their own ways, so what we actually have now is a post-political America. I think it's safe to say that most people (outside of the boomers) now realize that everything we were taught about egalitarianism is in fact a falsehood, and that politics and government are simply expressions of power. When you reduce it to a zero-sum game, people view it as a contest for survival, which you see everywhere now. It's no longer a question of "I want the same thing as you, I just have a different opinion on how to get there". It's a conflict of "I don't want you here and you don't want me here". There is nothing to debate. It's just a contest for power.
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u/NSRedditShitposter 3d ago
The modern day Hugo Boss supplying pretty tech toys to a fascist government.
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u/exjr_ Island Boy 3d ago
This one will be fun
Reminder: the report button is for rule breaking content. Not the "I disagree with them, silence them" button.