Apple said Thursday it is removing an app that allows users to share information about sightings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, which the head of ICE had criticized.
Axar.az informs, citing NBC, ICEBlock was removed from Apple’s App Store along with other apps like it, Apple said.
“We created the App Store to be a safe and trusted place to discover apps,” Apple said. “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.”
Trump administration officials have complained about assaults and threats to ICE agents, among them that they face being “doxxed,” a term that means personal information is shared online.
ICEBlock does not involve the sharing of personal information about agents, but it notifies people within a 5-mile radius of sightings.
The app was launched in April, around three months after President Donald Trump was inaugurated following a campaign in which he vowed to crack down on people in the country without legal authorization. Downloads took off in June, the month immigration raids were launched in Los Angeles.
Fox Business, which first reported that the app had been pulled Thursday, reported that Justice Department officials asked Apple to remove ICEBlock at the direction of Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Bondi said in a statement to Fox Business, "We reached out to Apple today demanding they remove the ICEBlock app from their App Store — and Apple did so."
Bondi told the news outlet that "ICEBlock is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs."