Turkey blocks access to 70 apps over personal data protection violations

A Turkish court on Thursday blocked access to 70 apps and websites that are designed to expose how others saved people's numbers, for putting its users' personal data safety at risk.

According to the 1st Ankara Penal Court of Peace's ruling seen by the Habertürk reporters, the apps and websites were blocked to protect "the safety of people's lives and property" after a complaint filed by the Telecoms watchdog BTK.

The decision came after an app called "GetContact" gained popularity among Turkish social media users last week. The app lets users see how their numbers were registered by other people's contact lists through creating a data pool.

The app's website, still accessible on Thursday evening, published a statement after the reports, saying that their data will not be sold to third parties and they are "working intensively to adapt to the regulations of the countries the app offers service."