MobleWar

Since the creation of smartphones, many users have been creating highly effective, useful apps and addicting games to make mobile devices an integral part of our lives. However, every once in a while, someone decides to create an app that big players Google and Apple deem to be unacceptable. From the thousands upon thousands of apps that have been created and accepted by either screening process, only a handful has been banned.

The Twisted Ban By Apple

One of the most controversial apps to hit the app store was called Baby Shaker. Causing a major stir with the parenting community, the premise of the app was simple: your phone has turned into a crying baby and it’s your job to shake it until it stops crying…or dies. It’s easy to see why this app was taken down just a few days after it slid under the app store radar; whether it was promoting child abuse or not, it isn’t acceptable to turn shaken baby syndrome into a game.

The Prankster Calls Google More

A more light-hearted app to be taken down an app created for prank calling. Only available from the Android market (because Apple denied their app), SpoofApp was used to do just as its name suggests—spoof your caller ID. Citing federal laws, Google removed the app after three years stating that the intentional changing of caller ID is illegal in the United States.

iTunes Deactivates the Activist

Not all apps were created to cause harm. One such app, Smuggle Truck, was developed to raise awareness of current issues within the government according to the creators. In the game, you controlled a truck that was on a mission to smuggle illegal immigrants across the proverbial border. Possibly due to outside influence, the iTunes store moderators pulled the app soon after its release deeming the satire to be inappropriate in nature.

The Tightrope Walker Hits the Android Net

Stand-alone games haven’t been the only apps scrutinized over the years. Recently, the Android market has cracked down on game emulating apps. While technically—at least in the United States—it is not illegal to create or distribute a game emulator; however, the games that are being emulated are illegal. Because of this fine line, the Google team decided not to risk any unwarranted lawsuits and removed any game emulation apps from the Market.