I'm not saying it is the case, but considering other tactics employed by ICE, this sounds like something they could deploy as a honeypot to profile potential targets.
They could and they could even make it a PWA so it would be on the home screen and able to send notifications.
But they only want to support native iOS for whatever reason (they've listed their reasons: https://www.iceblock.app/android, I just don't personally believe them to be technically accurate/truthful).
Being able to instantly know the locations of our friends and of threats to them (whether in the form of other people, natural disasters, fires, anything!) is such an obvious benefit to public safety in the information age.
It's one of the things that will finally allow us to supplant the yoke of the state, by having our own decentralized emergency response systems.
When will we realize this benefit? Do we really have to wait for Apple to fall?
As gets pointed out, that justification is post hoc; the argument wasn't made when the app was introduced, only after the ban. It's also leaning hard on "can be" and just letting the reader infer what "malicious" means. Clearly the intent is that protestors can show up to disrupt enforcement actions. Is that what you mean? If so, you should say so.
But it's also just plain overbroad: the same logic applies to Waze flagging of speed traps, which are also "crowd sourced law enforcement location data".
Basically this is bunk. The app got banned because the government doesn't want its enforcement actions disrupted by protestors, and whined[1] to Apple to coerce them into a ban.
[1] Plausibly threatened. It's not alleged here but they did it to Disney and Paramount already.
> People use Waze to avoid speed traps. Not protest them.
Exactly! So it is about protest then? You don't want people to show up and display their displeasure at the execution of a particular policy? Y'know, peaceably assembling and petitioning for redress of grievances and all? You don't maybe see a first amendment argument here?
Upthread commenter dropped "malicious" to imply something presumably worse, like threats to law enforcement officers that haven't been made. But if it's just about protest then we have a prior restraint on speech. And that's worse.
That same justification can be applied to block web browsers, any social media platform, and any navigation app that allows user alert inputs.
The entire thing reeks of the same Biden-era pressures on companies that had pandemic misinformation that Republicans were so vehemently opposed to. Somehow harming law enforcement is a better justification than harming random citizens.
Well why do you need an app store for this? Can't you just ... I donnow ... create a webpage with OpenStreetMap integration?
I'm not saying it is the case, but considering other tactics employed by ICE, this sounds like something they could deploy as a honeypot to profile potential targets.
Is that a difference from publishing an app on the app store?
They could and they could even make it a PWA so it would be on the home screen and able to send notifications.
But they only want to support native iOS for whatever reason (they've listed their reasons: https://www.iceblock.app/android, I just don't personally believe them to be technically accurate/truthful).
It is a webpage, they just had an app to view it.
install the "i saw waldo" app.
i dropped my tack on the map; i saw waldo about 100 feet to the north.
I can't find any such app.
then we will have to build it, i assume you get the gist already?
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45457333
Definitely a job for PWA.
Checkout quasar.dev
[dupe] Discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45457333
Get out of here Ars
Being able to instantly know the locations of our friends and of threats to them (whether in the form of other people, natural disasters, fires, anything!) is such an obvious benefit to public safety in the information age.
It's one of the things that will finally allow us to supplant the yoke of the state, by having our own decentralized emergency response systems.
When will we realize this benefit? Do we really have to wait for Apple to fall?
Apple falling will be insufficient, as another overlord will take over. Host your own is probably the only answer.
[flagged]
This was the correct move from apple. Tools like this used to crowdsource location data of law enforcement can be used for malicious purposes.
"law enforcement" is charitable.
As gets pointed out, that justification is post hoc; the argument wasn't made when the app was introduced, only after the ban. It's also leaning hard on "can be" and just letting the reader infer what "malicious" means. Clearly the intent is that protestors can show up to disrupt enforcement actions. Is that what you mean? If so, you should say so.
But it's also just plain overbroad: the same logic applies to Waze flagging of speed traps, which are also "crowd sourced law enforcement location data".
Basically this is bunk. The app got banned because the government doesn't want its enforcement actions disrupted by protestors, and whined[1] to Apple to coerce them into a ban.
[1] Plausibly threatened. It's not alleged here but they did it to Disney and Paramount already.
> Clearly the intent is that protestors can show up to disrupt enforcement actions.
Was this your claim or your description of someone else's claim?
You and the ICEBlock developer compared it to Waze. People use Waze to avoid speed traps. Not protest them.
> People use Waze to avoid speed traps. Not protest them.
Exactly! So it is about protest then? You don't want people to show up and display their displeasure at the execution of a particular policy? Y'know, peaceably assembling and petitioning for redress of grievances and all? You don't maybe see a first amendment argument here?
Upthread commenter dropped "malicious" to imply something presumably worse, like threats to law enforcement officers that haven't been made. But if it's just about protest then we have a prior restraint on speech. And that's worse.
That same justification can be applied to block web browsers, any social media platform, and any navigation app that allows user alert inputs.
The entire thing reeks of the same Biden-era pressures on companies that had pandemic misinformation that Republicans were so vehemently opposed to. Somehow harming law enforcement is a better justification than harming random citizens.