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mariodiana | 5 months ago

Back in 2011, Apple removed apps that crowdsourced warnings about DUI checkpoints. It remains Apple's policy today.

According to Grok, "In March 2011, four Democratic senators—Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), and Tom Udall (D-N.M.)—sent letters to Apple, Google, and Research in Motion (BlackBerry's parent company) urging the removal of such apps […]"

So, we have precedent where four Democratic senators pressured Apple to remove an app that allowed people to evade law enforcement.

discuss

order

magicalist|5 months ago

> to remove an app that allowed people to evade law enforcement.

No, they continued to allow police location apps (Google maps will even tell you where they are).

The language they added to the app store rules were very specific: "Apps may only display DUI checkpoints that are published by law enforcement agencies, and should never encourage drunk driving or other reckless behavior such as excessive speed."

Whether or not that was a good idea at the time (it wasn't), you can't claim this is covered by the same guidelines.

koolba|4 months ago

What purpose outside abetting in avoiding a DUI is there for publishing a live map of DUI checkpoints?

I’m not questioning whether you should be able to do it. I’m really curious.

Spivak|5 months ago

And it was wrong then too. Preventing people from sharing publicly available, literally visible from the street, information has got to be the brightest line violation of 1A. I'm really over how much the supreme court—not just this supreme court—has let the government end run around the constitution using tricks like this. Especially with the tax and spend power. If the government couldn't pass a law doing X then the government shouldn't be allowed to achieve X by any means.

Congressional dysfunction isn't an excuse to allow the creation of a shadow government orchestrated by the executive but here we are.

Nervhq|5 months ago

Just side load it apple user! Surely the great apple would never lock you in to a walled garden?

intermerda|5 months ago

> It remains Apple's policy today.

What is that policy?

> According to Grok

Why did you ask an LLM which is manipulated by a single person when he doesn't like facts?

> So, we have precedent where four Democratic senators pressured Apple to remove an app that allowed people to evade law enforcement.

Yes, senators sent letters to several companies. Apple listened. What would have happened if it didn't? What would happen to Apple if they don't listen now?

Do you sincerely believe that both situations are comparable?

tpmoney|4 months ago

> Do you sincerely believe that both situations are comparable?

How are they not? In both cases US government officials applied pressure and implied legal action to force private companies to act in ways that enabled law enforcement to act with less resistance. It’s why we should always push back against government overreach and bullying. Because the “slippery slope” might be a logical fallacy, but that doesn’t stop it from also being the most likely outcome of the government pushing the boundaries.

unethical_ban|5 months ago

Why is Waze allowed since it let's you report speed traps?

Probably because it doesn't technically advertise it as such, just "hey something requiring police presence is around".

ICEBlock should rebrand as a generic "police activity" app and have a category "other" that everyone understands is ICE but isn't labelled as such.

closewith|5 months ago

> Why is Waze allowed since it let's you report speed traps?

Nominally the purpose of speed enforcement is to reduce vehicle speeds, which Waze notifications achieve.

Waze - at least in my country - did remove COVID checkpoints during lockdowns, so they don't allow all reports.

dghlsakjg|4 months ago

The exact verbiage is this: "Apps may only display DUI checkpoints that are published by law enforcement agencies, and should never encourage drunk driving or other reckless behavior such as excessive speed."

ThrowawayTestr|4 months ago

>Why is Waze allowed since it let's you report speed traps?

Because the right to share police locations is protected by the 1st amendment

Pxtl|4 months ago

While it's still bad, you can see how it's worse when it's coming directly from a regulator top-down from the president, right?

Senators gave no individual direct control over regulation. They can influence appointments or influence legislation, which is still power backing the implied threat, but that's a much more roundabout threat than a single person with direct power to destroy your business.