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   US gov wants Google and Apple to take down websites tracking ICE and friends   
      
   Date:   
   Mon, 08 Dec 2025 15:35:00 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   The US government wants to ensure that apps like ICEBlock dont make it to   
   online app stores.   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   The US House Committee on Homeland Security is pressuring Google and Apple to   
   remove apps that let users track federal immigration officers.    
      
    Letters addressed to CEOs Sundar Pichai and Tim Cook specifically target the   
   app ICEBlock, an app previously used to monitor US Immigration and Customs   
   Enforcement agents, and one thats now jeopardizi[ng] the safety of DHS   
   personnel.    
      
   As a result, both Google and Apple have been asked to provide briefings by   
   December 12 on how they are handling preventing such apps from their   
   platforms.   
      
   DHS has concerns over ICE agent tracking apps    
      
   The US government is worried that users can anonymously track ICE and CBP   
   agents to warn communities of enforcement activity. Though no longer   
   available, ICEBlock amassed over one million users before being taken town.    
      
   One of these apps, ICEBlock, was used by a gunman to track the movement of    
   ICE agents prior to a deadly shooting in September at an ICE facility in   
   Dallas, Texas, the letter reads.    
      
   Apple removed the app from its App Store over concerns that its content could   
   harm individuals or groups, and Google asserts the app was never available on   
   its Play Store. Both have also removed other similar apps.    
      
   A post on the ICEBlock website notifying users the app was removed from the   
   App Store reads: ICEBlock is no different from crowd sourcing speed traps,   
   which every notable mapping application, including Apple's own Maps app,   
   implements as part of its core services. This is protected speech under the   
   first amendment of the United States Constitution.    
      
   In recent years, ICE has faced criticism for alleged civil rights abuses and   
   failures to adhere to constitutional principles and due process, making it   
   crucial for communities to stay informed about its operations, the website    
   and app developers continue.    
      
   Although the app is no longer available to download, as of December 8 2025,    
   it still functions on devices that already have it installed.    
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/pro/us-gov-wants-google-and-apple-to-take-down-websi   
   tes-tracking-ice-and-friends   
      
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