{"id":49474,"date":"2025-10-03T14:18:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T18:18:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/?p=49474"},"modified":"2025-12-09T16:30:50","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T21:30:50","slug":"iceblock-removed-from-the-app-store","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2025\/10\/03\/iceblock-removed-from-the-app-store\/","title":{"rendered":"ICEBlock Removed From the App Store"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ashley Oliver<\/a> (Hacker News<\/a>, MSN<\/a>, The Verge<\/a>, 9to5Mac<\/a>):<\/p>\n

Apple dropped ICEBlock, a widely used tracking tool, from its App Store Thursday after the Department of Justice raised concerns with the big tech giant that the app put law enforcement officers at risk.<\/p>

[…]<\/p>

Controversy surrounding ICE tracking apps intensified after last month’s deadly shooting at an ICE field office in Dallas, Texas, the latest in a series of attacks that appeared to be targeting immigration enforcement officers.<\/p>

[…]<\/p>

Apple said in a statement it removed ICEBlock and other apps like it.<\/p>

“We created the App Store to be a safe and trusted place to discover apps. Based on information we’ve received from law enforcement about the safety risks associated with ICEBlock, we have removed it and similar apps from the App Store,” Apple said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I’m surprised<\/a> it lasted this long, since Apple also doesn’t allow apps for crowdsourcing DUI checkpoints<\/a>, even though to my knowledge neither type of app is actually illegal. This is pretty much exactly how the HKmap Live situation played out, except that there Apple noted that the Web site could still be added to an iPhone user’s home screen. ICEBlock has no Web site (or Android app), so removing it from the App Store will eventually kill the service. I guess if you’ve already downloaded the app you can keep using it, but it won’t get any updates and can’t be transferred to new devices.<\/p>\n\n

Previously:<\/p>\n