In the second week of March, the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) tweeted out that they, in cooperation with Yayasan Ihtimam Malaysia, have released the Hijrah Diri app.
The app contains curated stories, recitations, supplications, and dhikr (remembrances) including wite papers and audio lectures that JAKIM said is aimed to help those in the LGBT+ community “return to innocence”.
Hijrah Diri ialah sebuah aplikasi inisiatif JAKIM bersama Yayasan Ihtimam Malaysia untuk bantu golongan LGBT kembali kepada fitrah.
— JAKIM (@MyJAKIM) March 9, 2022
Buat masa ini hanya ada di Google Play Store.
Untuk muat turun, sil klik pautan di https://t.co/VjGJ7fsfIV pic.twitter.com/KJ7koDZ2M4
The app was available on Google Play until it was pulled from the Android platform this week.
According to The Guardian, Google said “whenever an app is flagged to us, we investigate against our Play store policies and if violations are found we take appropriate action to maintain a trusted experience for all.”
This means that the app survived Google’s vetting process but was taken down because of user’s complaints.
A Twitter user pointed out that the Hijrah Diri app is a security hazard and required almost total access to its user’s device.
Not only does it require camera access, it also requests for location, microphone, telephone, storage, and other miscellaneous permission that has nothing to do with the app’s functions.
dah nama ebook buat apa nak buat app? pdf dah ler
— Haris (@harisbinali) March 10, 2022
kenapa ebook nak camera, mic, WiFi, and location permissions pulak?
flagged on the play store as inappropriate https://t.co/UMdT1V1xxc pic.twitter.com/SOKO2SbJUj
A campaign to flag the app was also launched.
Please flag this app as inappropriate- hateful or abusive content pic.twitter.com/qPQTrDsXLV
— Siva 🏳️🌈 🏴🏳️⚧️ (@Sivavmn) March 10, 2022
Despite all that, the app still survives as a web app and can be accessed here.
