Earlier this week, Brazil issued a court order to have anonymous sharing app Secret delisted from the App Store and Google Play store in the country. Apple has followed the instructions after it made the app unavailable in Brazil, 9to5mac reports.
Brazilian national law forbids anonymous speech, which means Secret — and, we presume, rivals like Whisper and Yik Yak — are illegal in the country. Section 22.1 of Apple’s App Store guide states that apps “must comply with all legal requirements in any location where they are made available to users,” as 9to5mac points out.
The ruling this week gave Google and Apple 10 days to remove the app. We’ve tested the app store listing using a VPN and it appears to still be available via the Google Play store in Brazil. For now, at least.
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Update: Whisper contacted to explain that it is not banned in Brazil since it prohibits the use of proper names, which is what Brazil’s ban centers around.
Yik Yak’s representatives confirmed that their app is not banned in Brazil.
➤ Apple removes Secret app from Brazilian App Store for not conforming with local laws [9to5mac]
Thumbnail image via alphaspirit / Shutterstock
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