Apple forced to remove LinkedIn app from Russian App Store

AppleInsider

Russian authorities recently required Apple and Google to remove the LinkedIn app from their respective digital stores in a move tied to a court ruling from November that blocked access to the service for ignoring local internet regulations.

LinkedIn has been scrubbed from Apple's App Store in Russia.

As noted by The New York Times, iOS and Android users living in Russia no longer have access to legitimate versions of the LinkedIn app. For now, LinkedIn content is reportedly still available for those who have the app installed, but the software was already malfunctioning due to an internet embargo imposed on the service's website last year.

In November, a Russian court found LinkedIn in breach of regulations that require foreign companies operating internet services to keep data pertaining to Russian accounts inside the nation's borders. Though many international internet firms store data on offshore servers, and are thus in contempt of Russian law, LinkedIn was apparently singled out in a rare case of enforcement, the report said.

The Microsoft-owned company said it was "disappointed" in the new development.

"It denies access to our members in Russia and the companies that use LinkedIn to grow their businesses," said Nicole Leverich, a spokesperson for LinkedIn.

While an exact timeline of events is unknown, Apple said regulators asked the company to remove LinkedIn from its Russian App Store about a month ago, the report said. Whether the demand came from a court, or more likely Russia's Roskomnadzor telecommunications regulatory body, is unknown at this time.

The LinkedIn takedown is Apple's second state-demanded app removal to be reported this week. On Wednesday, the company removed the New York Times apps in China for violating unspecified local laws.

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gatorguy

safi said:

Rightly so. No one wants their data harvested by NSA

I doubt any of us here are important enough for the NSA to have any interest at all in "our data". Zero.

As for the Russian court ruling it is certainly within their right to require stored data about it's citizens on-line activities within their countries borders to be stored there. LinkedIn failed to comply for whatever reason, altho both Apple and Google themselves do. As much as we (the US) distrusts Russia and China they are equally distrustful of US techs/ government. 

williamh

safi said:

Rightly so. No one wants their data harvested by NSA

Gatorguy,  They are going through our data whether or not we are important. It's called data mining. They are  trying to figure out if you are important in some way or contacted someone who is.

The author should've mentioned that the EU has similar requirements so this isn't some peculiar Russian thing.  The EU has strict privacy laws and you cannot simply transfer EU citizen data to a jurisdiction where that data will not be afforded the same protections.  The European approach to privacy is very different than in the United States. 

gatorguy

williamh said:

safi said:

Rightly so. No one wants their data harvested by NSA

Gatorguy,  They are going through our data whether or not we are important. It's called data mining. They are  trying to figure out if you are important in some way or contacted someone who is.

The author should've mentioned that the EU has similar requirements so this isn't some peculiar Russian thing.  The EU has strict privacy laws and you cannot simply transfer EU citizen data to a jurisdiction where that data will not be afforded the same protections.  The European approach to privacy is very different than in the United States. 

The credit bureaus gather up "your private data" too, even sell it.  Some state driver's license bureaus do too. Pharmacies? Yup, they share prescription info connected to you. Insurers? Yes again. The NSA at least has very valid reasons to be aware of dangers to the citizens they're supposed to help protect. They are the least of my privacy concerns, and have the least direct affect on my private life and finances out of any of those.

I would guess certain agencies of the Russian government would be more of a privacy (or other) danger to a person living in Russia than any data-gathering the NSA could possibly do. 

VernonDozier

safi said:

Rightly so. No one wants their data harvested by NSA

Local regulations should be the standard.  If you grow up in Montana where the highway speed limit is 85, a cop in California will write you a ticket based on the local ordinance.

The problem, however, is that Apple is choosing to be in a role where it is a "software regulator" of sorts with its own judge and jury instead of allowing the developer to rectify the app.  

Its ta only a matter of time before a sample document used to pull an app becomes available online and forged. 

entropys

I reckon what Apple should do is leave the details of the app on the app store, but instead of the 'Get' button have a box stating "this app has been removed at the demand of the Russian Government and is no longer available in the app store". Or similar. Ditto any other government, like the Chinese.

Even so, for similar reasons for hating authoritarian governments sticking their noses into citizens' privacy, I despise LinkedIn.

veisongv

Hello everybody! I am from Moscow, Russia and I am Russian. I can understand from government point of view that it is important to protect country, even not us but the country as a whole mechanism, that is the only goal. But I can see that Internet in Russia becomes less and less open, more and more like Chinese, just few steps away now. And Chinese internet... I know it well, when finding and opening website with some recipe how to cook pasta can be real challenge. We have to protect intellectual property, our country, but closing our internet step by step mean closing us from the World, and I really do not happy with that. Just thoughts... I and many my friends we want to be part of the great World all countries built together... Closing opening, deleting, I think everybody with decent mind tired of it. So much waste of efforts and time...

maciekskontakt

In general that application is garabage that demands access to contacts. Well I am not giving access to my contacts to some creepy application and company that then sells my data without my permission and even makes up my business contact that I never published on LinkedIn. No wonder Russiians plugged that greedy solution. I know some pay to access data, but then it does not mean you are allowed to distribute them without permission. In fact try it in Europe and see what happens and how quickly you will be in court.

maciekskontakt

williamh said:

safi said:

Rightly so. No one wants their data harvested by NSA

Gatorguy,  They are going through our data whether or not we are important. It's called data mining. They are  trying to figure out if you are important in some way or contacted someone who is.

The author should've mentioned that the EU has similar requirements so this isn't some peculiar Russian thing.  The EU has strict privacy laws and you cannot simply transfer EU citizen data to a jurisdiction where that data will not be afforded the same protections.  The European approach to privacy is very different than in the United States. 

Exactly! that is why I mentioned that companies like LinkedIn will face lawsuits by government agancies in EU if they do not comply with privacy laws. You cannot just distribute someones data or contacts without permission in EU. That is not the USA marketing free-for-all.

maciekskontakt

VernonDozier said:

safi said:

Rightly so. No one wants their data harvested by NSA

Local regulations should be the standard.  If you grow up in Montana where the highway speed limit is 85, a cop in California will write you a ticket based on the local ordinance.

The problem, however, is that Apple is choosing to be in a role where it is a "software regulator" of sorts with its own judge and jury instead of allowing the developer to rectify the app.  

Its ta only a matter of time before a sample document used to pull an app becomes available online and forged. 

Your statement is irrelevant. Aiutonomic places - countries - have their own and they choose not to stanardize. Accept that and do not try to to create something like communixstic solution with centralized decisions. The world does not work like this... well maybe in China.