*Churches nationwide are reportedly using anti-porn applications to keep tabs on congregants’ online activity.
The churches are using “accountability apps” such as Covenant Eyes and Accountable2You to make sure members don’t view content considered “immoral.” Both apps claim to distinguish pornographic images from non-pornographic ones.
“The Covenant Eyes app allows you freedom through transparency. The app sits quietly on all of your devices, monitors your screen activity, and provides protection through blocking,” per the official website. The app can be installed on all the devices that need to be monitored.
A report of the user’s online activity is sent directly to an “accountability partner” (the user’s appointed chaperone) who serves as an ally to hold the user accountable for their online behavior.
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Joe thought he had everything, and on the outside, he did. He had a loving wife, children, and a successful career. But he had something else: a porn addiction. In this video, see how much he gained by removing porn from his life and how you can too.https://t.co/Deo0Xa8Uc2 pic.twitter.com/8tzNr64slr
— Covenant Eyes (@CovenantEyes) July 19, 2022
According to Google, both Covenant Eyes and Accountable2You violate its policies as some deem such services to be spyware, Wired reports.
“I wouldn’t quite call it spyware,” says a former member of Gracepoint who was asked to use Covenant Eyes and spoke on the condition of anonymity, due to privacy concerns. “It’s more like ‘shameware,’ and it’s just another way the church controls you.”
Meanwhile, critics are not quite sold on these apps’ claims to have helped many people overcome addictions to pornography.
“I’ve never seen anyone who’s been on one of these apps feel better about themselves in the long term,” says Nicole Praus, a scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who studies the effects of pornography on the brain and the spread of disinformation on sexual health. “These people just end up feeling like there’s something wrong with them when the reality is that there likely isn’t.”
Covenant Eyes and Accountable2You have reportedly been suspended from the Google Play store.
“Google Play permits the use of the Accessibility API for a wide range of applications,” spokesperson Danielle Cohen said in an email to Wired. “However, only services that are designed to help people with disabilities access their device or otherwise overcome challenges stemming from their disabilities are eligible to declare that they are accessibility tools.”
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