App that allows people to share ICE sightings gets boost in downloads after White House backlash

A new platform that encourages users to share information about sightings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents nearby rose to the top of the Apple App Store this week, amid criticism from Trump administration officials who say the app could put agents at risk.

ICEBlock, which launched in April, made headlines after a CNN article about it was called out by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt and ICE acting Director Todd M. Lyons on Monday. Both cited concerns over agent safety in their statements about the app, stating that “agents are facing a 500% increase in assaults.”

But Joshua Aaron, ICEBlock’s Texas-based developer, called the administration’s recent criticism “another right-wing fearmongering scare tactic,” telling NBC News in a phone interview on Tuesday that his app was designed to be a resource for immigrants who are fearful they will get deported. He said he felt like he was “watching history repeat itself” when he saw things like “5-year-olds in courtrooms with no representation” and “college students being disappeared for their political opinions.”

The app, which is free and gives users the ability to anonymously report ICE sightings within a five-mile radius, had approximately 95,200 users as of Monday, Aaron said. He said he has not received updated figures from Apple since the White House and ICE issued their comments on the app.

ICEBlock is among several crowdsourcing platforms — including the website People Over Papers and the app ResistMap — that people across the U.S. have utilized to warn immigrants in their communities about ICE’s whereabouts. Its popularity comes amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration. Raids — and subsequent protests in cities like Los Angeles — have become more widespread as ICE has ramped up its deportation of immigrants.

In Monday’s White House briefing, Leavitt said she had not seen CNN’s report about ICEBlock, but described the app as “encouraging violence against law enforcement officers who are trying to keep our country safe.”

When asked for comment about ICEBlock, a spokesperson for ICE referred NBC News to Lyons’ previous statement in which he called CNN’s reporting “sickening,” and said the app “basically paints a target on federal law enforcement officers’ backs.” He also expressed concern that covering the app could invite “violence against them with a national megaphone.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also weighed in on Tuesday, saying, “We’re working with the Department of Justice to see if we can prosecute them [CNN] for that.”