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3 controversial apps that probably should not exist

The app market is saturated with all kinds of apps that are supposed to entertain or help us in some way. But with so many apps in the market, there are bound to be a few that raise eyebrows.

Marauder’s Map

The Chrome extension, dubbed “Marauder’s Map” in a tongue-in-cheek nod to Harry Potter, harvests your friends’ location data to map a history of their movements over time.
The Chrome extension, dubbed “Marauder’s Map” in a tongue-in-cheek nod to Harry Potter, harvests your friends’ location data to map a history of their movements over time.


Although not quite a mobile app, this Google Chrome extension has been causing a stir in the Facebook community. The extension, named after Harry Potter’s magical map, has the ability to track your Facebook friend’s past and present location.

Marauders Map pulls up the most recent location of a Facebook user via Facebook Messenger. Any messages sent with a location attached is added to the map – yes, that includes locations sent from your Facebook Messenger mobile app.

It definitely sounds like the perfect tool for a stalker, but why was the extension made in the first place?

According to the mastermind, who is actually an intern at Facebook, the extension was meant to highlight just how much information we are revealing on popular apps such as Facebook Messenger.

“We are constantly being told how we are losing privacy with the increasing digitalisation of our lives, however the consequences never seem tangible,” said Aran Khanna, a student at Harvard College in Computer Science and Mathematics, in his Medium post.

At Facebook’s request, Khanna has deactivated the API key associated with the app, rendering it non-functional, but provided a code for tech-savvy users to make it functional again.

“I have been told Facebook is working to fix the issue, so don’t expect the code to be functional for long,” read the description of the extension.

Next time you send a message on Facebook Messenger, make sure that your location setting is turned off if you don’t want the person you are chatting with to possibly sniff out where you live or hang out.

Ashley Madison

Who can forget the highly controversial extra-marital dating website that sparked debates across Singapore in 2013?

Did you know they have an app too?

The Canada-based pro-adultery platform has seen some success in parts of Asia, namely in Japan and Hong Kong, but has been banned from Singapore and South Korea.

Ashley Madison blatantly promotes adultery right down to its tagline, “Life is short. Have an affair.” and is by far the most controversial app to enter our market.  

Being the first country to ban the site, Singapore’s Media Development Authority (MDA) said in a media statement that it is against public interest to allow the promotion of infidelity.

The app was also pulled from Singapore’s Apple App Store and Google Play.

Carrot Dating

Carrot Dating is a dating app created by MIT graduate Brandon Wade, to allow users to ‘dangle a carrot’ before women – in the form of jewellery, flowers, or even a boob job – in exchange for romance.

It was widely slammed as being sexist and "basically prostitution".

“If you offer a woman a present in exchange for a first date, you are basically implying that she can be bought, much like a hooker,” Business Insider wrote.

Coming to the defense of his app, Wade said, “Women have all the power in the online dating world; they receive countless messages from suitors, while men struggle for even a single reply.”

In a press kit, he also said that the app teaches men that it’s not okay to show up empty-handed for a first date and trains them to be more chivalrous.