Anti-Vaxxers app gets booted off Apple’s AppStore
As the world is reaching closer to achieving herd immunity, disinformation and vocal resistance from anti-vaxxers has been stronger than ever. However, their momentum is battling a strong opposition.
The battle against disinformation has been taken up by Apple, who booted an app called “Unjected” from its App Store on Saturday; a platform that regards itself as a safe community for anti-vaxxers to establish business, friendship, and even find love.
In a move that has been linked to censorship, Apple made it clear that Unjected went against its COVID-19 policies and tried to maneuver its way around the Store’s review process. For example, Unjected founders asked the app’s users to avoid using anti-vaccination words, including “jabbed” and “microchip.”
After Bloomberg News published a report outlining how Apple and Google are dealing with disinformation regarding COVID-19, Apple removed the app. While Google on the other hand has been relatively patient with anti-vaxxers.
During mid-July, Google warned Unjected’s founders about the dangers of spreading disinformation on COVID-19, which includes users stating that vaccines are “experimental gene modifiers” and “nano-technology microchips.”
The founders acted as per Google’s request and took down the social feed, although a trusted source was quoted as saying to Bloomberg said that Unjected’s founders are planning to retore it, aiming to “stay under the radar.”
The app is currently available for download on the Play Store.
In a now deleted post, Unjected shared a screenshot of the Bloomberg report, saying: “We must use our voices. We are fighting the censorship of our freedoms and we won’t stop.”
The founders of the anti-vaxxers community app told Gizmodo that they view themselves as a respectful group of people bonding together over their medical views as well as supporting freedom of choice.
“We believe their unjust censorship policies on Google and Apple violates our constitutional rights,” Unjected highlighted to Gizmodo.
Unjected launched in May as a dating app, with one Twitter user sharing a screenshot of the reviews mocking anti-vaxxers. The app only recently announced additional features such as a list of businesses that “respect our autonomy and promote freedom.”
However, as science keeps proving time and time again, COVID-19 vaccines are saving lives.
Consider a recent study from the UK conducted by Imperial College of London, where 200,000 people developed antibodies against the virus within two weeks of their second dose.
Even though there were concerns that the current vaccines may not be as effective against the Delta variant, studies suggest that both the AstraZeneca and the Pfizer-BioNTech jabs decrease the chances of hospitalization by 92-96 percent.
As many health experts have emphasized, the risks of side effects from a vaccine are a walk in the park in comparison to the risk of the disease itself.
Yet, a great number of people insist on believing conspiracy theories and revolting against their own good. This is no surprise, as over the years multiple anti-vaccination campaign were brought to light by individuals who feed off medical cries to install their own agenda.
However, in the modern age of digital media, strategies of sharing disinformation have expanded to an extent where it has become treacherous.
Participants of the ant-vaccine movement paint themselves as rebellious figures who are only asking for the basic human right: freedom of choice. Yet, they fail to realize the immense danger they’re putting themselves and others into. One could argue that being an anti-vaxxer is a selfish act.
Nevertheless, the push for putting an end to disinformation, as well as dismantling patterns of arguments used multiple times in the past by anti-vaxxers can act as a powerful tool to combat the ill-founded tactics seen by individuals risking their safety, and others.