Google removed the chat app ToTok from the Play Store for the second time, allegedly a spy tool for the United Arab Emirates.
The app was previously removed from Apple's App Store and Google Play Store in December. Soon after, Google quietly resumed the app in January, but the app was still unavailable on the App Store.
9to5Google earlier today noticed that ToTok was taken down again, and then Google confirmed to the media the decision to take down the application without providing any explanation.
According to The Times, ToTok was removed from the app store for the first time because it violated a store policy (the specific policy violation entry will only be explained to the developer).
ToTok is a messaging app that claims to provide "fast, free and secure" messaging and calling, and has been downloaded by millions of people in the UAE and other parts of the Middle East.
The app was one of the most downloaded social apps in the United States shortly before being removed from the Play Store and App Store in December, but a New York Times survey found that the app allows the UAE government to monitor its users.
In a statement issued in December, ToTok denied "malicious rumors," saying that "not only do we respect privacy and ensure security, our users can also completely decide what data to share."
