According to the report, the prosecutor is pushing for not only Apple and Google to remove the application from their respective app stores, but to also remotely delete the application from every device that has it installed. The reason for this is the advent of cyberbulling and harassment, which has brought negative attention to Secret in the past.
Related: Create virtual cliques with Secret app’s “Dens” feature for work, school gossip
Remotely removing apps from phones is possible on Android, which Google had to take advantage of back in 2010. The company remotely wiped a batch of malicious software from both the Play Store and some user’s devices. Apple, meanwhile, reportedly has iOS devices periodically reach out to its servers, which maintain a list of blacklisted applications. If servers find that an app installed on an iOS device is blacklisted, the device will refuse to launch it.
At this moment, there is no official ruling on the matter, though according to one of 9to5Mac’s sources, Secret has sent counsel to Brazil to further investigate the situation. However, if a ruling does occur, it would go against Apple, Google, and Microsoft instead of Secret itself.
Related: One third of smartphone owners in the U.K. don’t care about apps at all
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