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.

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Top Rated Comments

rmoliv Avatar
52 months ago
Apple’s bowing to the Chinese govt. Disgusting.
Score: 41 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Razzerman Avatar
52 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
52 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
52 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
52 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
52 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)

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