Apple has reportedly banned an app that allows Hong Kong protestors to track protests and police movements in the city state, despite increasing international condemnation against the violence used by the authorities.

hkmap live
According to The Register, Apple has told the makers of the HKmap Live app that it can't be allowed in the App Store because it helps protestors to evade the police.

"Your app contains content - or facilitates, enables, and encourages an activity - that is not legal ... specifically, the app allowed users to evade law enforcement," the American tech giant told makers of the HKmap Live on Tuesday before pulling it.

Opposition to the Chinese state and the Hong Kong authorities has grown louder, driven by an escalation in violence against protestors over the past week. On Wednesday, thousands of people took to the streets of Hong Kong to denounce the shooting of an unarmed teenage student by police.

Tsang Chi-kin was shot in the chest at point-blank range on Tuesday. He remains in hospital in stable but critical condition after surgery to remove the bullet, which narrowly missed his heart.

The rise in police violence has led protesters to make use of digital networking and collaborative tools to organize street gatherings, with services like HKmap Live being used to help them avoid what they perceive as government-orchestrated attacks.

This isn't the first time Apple has acted to remove apps from the ‌App Store‌ to abide by Chinese law. In July 2017, Apple removed the majority of VPN apps from the App Store in China, following regulations passed earlier in the year that require such apps to be authorized by the Chinese government.

Update 1:19 p.m.: Apple is reviewing its decision to reject HKmap Live, reports Bloomberg, and is likely investigating whether the software violates local laws. It's not yet clear if the app will be re-added to the ‌App Store‌ and the developer has not yet received an update from Apple following the commencement of the new review.

Update October 4 10:39 a.m.: As reported by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple has now approved HKmap Live.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Top Rated Comments

rmoliv Avatar
45 months ago
Apple’s bowing to the Chinese govt. Disgusting.
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Razzerman Avatar
45 months ago
This is a move purely to keep the Chinese government happy. Shame on apple and captain cook.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kabeyun Avatar
45 months ago
The incident in which a protester was recently shot occurred because a group of 15 protesters chased down a cop and attacked him with billy clubs and hammers. If people are using an Apple app to figure out where to attack police officers, I understand that there might be another reason for pulling the app besides slavish compliance with the Chinese government.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jimbobb24 Avatar
45 months ago
Apple via Cook: people should be free to come illegally to US and violate the laws

Also Apple: we don’t want to hinder the police efforts of a totalitarian state as it crushes free Hong Kong
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
magicschoolbus Avatar
45 months ago
Apple, always practicing what they preach. What a joke. Better watch out for that corporate social credit score.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sinoka56 Avatar
45 months ago

"Tsang Chi-kin was shot in the chest at point-blank range on Tuesday"

Way to go fake news for spinning the story leaving out critical parts. Him and his fellow rioters were attacking a police officer with hammers and metal pipes. The guy who was shot just swung at the officer. Go swing a metal pipe at a police officer in the free USA and see what happens.

I'm all for peaceful protest and even war but if you attack violently don't cry when you're attacked back.
The protestor did not use a metal pipe, he used a PVC pipe.

Video here shows that the police planted the metal pipe to frame the protestor.
[MEDIA=reddit]HongKong/comments/dcn9ic[/MEDIA]

A fully police crying for help when they attack unarmored protestors with a lethal gun, bean bag gun or not.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 15 Pro Mock Feature Buttonless

iPhone 15 Pro Max to 'Break Record' for Thinnest Bezels on a Smartphone

Friday March 17, 2023 2:59 am PDT by
The iPhone 15 Pro Max will have the thinnest bezels of any smartphone, beating the record currently held by the Xiaomi 13. That's according to the leaker known as "Ice Universe," who has divulged accurate information about Apple's plans in the past. Both iPhone 15 Pro models are expected to have thinner, curved bezels compared to the iPhone 14 Pro, potentially resulting in an Apple...
iPhone 12 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro Feature

iPhone 12 Pro vs. 15 Pro: New Features to Expect if You've Waited to Upgrade

Friday March 17, 2023 10:29 am PDT by
While year-over-year iPhone upgrades are not always groundbreaking, new features can begin to stack up over multiple generations. For example, the iPhone 15 Pro will be a notable upgrade for those who still have a three-year-old iPhone 12 Pro. If you are still using an iPhone 12 Pro and are considering upgrading to the iPhone 15 Pro when it launches later this year, we have put together a...
iphone 14 pro max deep purple feature purple

iPhone 15 Pro Launching This Year With These 11 New Features

Monday March 13, 2023 6:47 am PDT by
While the iPhone 15 lineup is around six months away, there have already been plenty of rumors about the devices. Many new features and changes are expected for the iPhone 15 Pro models in particular, including a titanium frame and more. Below, we have recapped 11 features rumored for iPhone 15 Pro models that are not expected to be available on the standard iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus:A17...
top stories 18mar2023

Top Stories: iPhone 15 Pro Pricing, New iOS 16.4 Beta, Siri vs. ChatGPT, and More

Saturday March 18, 2023 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's high-end iPhone models have started at $999 in the U.S. since they first launched back in 2017 with the iPhone X, but could this finally be the year that starting price sees an increase? This week also saw some more rumors about Apple's upcoming headset and the company's explorations in the booming AI industry as well as the release of a new round of beta updates, so read on for all...
iphone 14 pro max deep purple feature purple

iPhone 15 Pro Predicted to See First Price Increase Since iPhone X

Wednesday March 15, 2023 7:49 am PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max will likely be more expensive than previous Pro models, according to Jeff Pu, a tech analyst at Hong Kong-based investment firm Haitong International Securities. In a research note this week, Pu predicted the iPhone 15 Pro models will see a price increase due to several rumored hardware upgrades, including a titanium frame,...
original iphone auction

Factory-Sealed Original iPhone Sells for $55,000 at Auction

Friday March 17, 2023 1:08 pm PDT by
A first-generation iPhone still sealed inside its box sold for $54,904 at auction, which is more than $54,000 over the original $599 price tag of the device when it was released in 2007. The original iPhone was put up for sale by RR Auction on behalf of a former Apple employee who purchased it back when it first came out. Back in February, an original, sealed iPhone sold for over $63,000,...