
screenshot/cnn
CNN aired a segment on Monday about the ICEBlock app, which allows users to alert people that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents are in the area.
CNN Business writer Clare Duffy came on “CNN News Central” to report on the new app created by Joshua Aaron, which is designed to be an “early warning system” to avoid ICE agents by tracking their location. Users can share the exact location of ICE agents that are located within 5 miles of them and add specific details about the agents, including what they wore or what vehicle they were using.
“I talked with Joshua Aaron, who is the longtime tech worker who developed this platform and he said he really wants it to be an early warning system for people about the location of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. So, he says he does not want people interfering with those officers’ activities, but he does want people to be able to avoid them altogether if they want,” Duffy said.
WATCH:
Duffy then gave a rundown of how a user can use this app, which included bullet points outlining how users can anonymously submit the “ICE sightings,” alert users of ICE agents’ locations within 5 miles and that they can download the platform for free.
Aaron, a staunch opponent of President Donald Trump’s hawkish immigration policies, describes himself a “proud Antifa” on his social media profile. He urged users to use his app in order to “resist” against the administration and “keep people, and their communities, safe.”
Last week I spoke about ICEBlock (@iceblock.app) with the incredible @claresduffy.bsky.social from CNN and it’s now live.
She’ll be on air at 9:45am EST this morning talking about it.
Let’s help keep people, and their communities, safe by encouraging everyone to use it. #resist
— Joshua Aaron (@joshua.stealingheather.com) June 30, 2025 at 9:22 AM
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated on June 20 that ICE agents are facing a 500% increase in assaults while carrying out their duties, which includes arresting illegal immigrants convicted of heinous crimes. Families of the agents have been “doxed and targeted” in recent days.
CNN told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the network “reported” on an app that is currently “generating attention across the United States,” adding that they reached out to ICE prior to publication.
“CNN reported on a publicly available app, which is generating attention across the United States, and reached out to ICE for comment prior to publication. After CNN published its reporting, ICE posted a response, which is now included in the story,” a CNN spokesperson said.
Acting ICE director Todd M. Lyons said in a statement that CNN’s “reckless and irresponsible” promotion of the app is “endangering the lives of officers who put their lives on the line.”
“CNN’s promotion of an ‘ICE spotting’ app is reckless and irresponsible,” Lyons said. “Advertising an app that basically paints a target on federal law enforcement officers’ backs is sickening. My officers and agents are already facing a 500% increase in assaults, and going on live television to announce an app that lets anyone zero in on their locations is like inviting violence against them with a national megaphone. CNN is willfully endangering the lives of officers who put their lives on the line every day and enabling dangerous criminal aliens to evade U.S. law. Is this simply reckless ‘journalism’ or overt activism?”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Monday that it is “unacceptable” for a network to “promote” an app that “encourages violence” against ICE agents.
In Los Angeles, California, ICE agents conducted a wide-scale operation that led to the arrests of foreign nationals convicted of second-degree murder, sexual crimes and drug distribution.
Rioters began lighting the city on fire, throwing Molotov cocktails and assaulting law enforcement officers as a way to retaliate against the ICE operations. Fox News’ Bill Melugin posted photographs of rioters throwing rocks at Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents as they attempted to leave Paramount, California, causing one agent to suffer an injury to his hand after a rock broke through the windshield.
Emiliano Garduno-Galvez, a previously deported illegal migrant from Mexico, was charged with attempted murder after he allegedly lit a Molotov cocktail as ICE agents were approaching nearby, DHS confirmed on June 7.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].