[Source]

Jonathan Zdziarski, author of the book iPhone Forensics Manual, has recently discovered that the new iPhone OS (2.x) has a blacklisting method. In a nutshell, the iPhone will contact home, retrieve a list of unauthorized apps, and then disable any apps installed on your phone that match the blacklist.

“This suggests that the iPhone calls home once in a while to find out what applications it should turn off. At the moment, no apps have been blacklisted, but by all appearances, this has been added to disable applications that the user has already downloaded and paid for, if Apple so chooses to shut them down.

I discovered this doing a forensic examination of an iPhone 3G. It appears to be tucked away in a configuration file deep inside CoreLocation.”

Please note that this is entirely different from Apple removing/delisting the application from the App Store. For example, even though Apple pulled NetShare recently, people who have already purchased the app can still use the NetShare to its full functionality. And while there are currently no apps listed on the blacklist, if Apple decided to add, say NetShare, to the mix, the application would no longer be functional.

The blacklist is located on the following remote URL:

https://iphone-services.apple.com/clbl/unauthorizedApps

wow this is scary.

Cool man....means those ppl sharing apps will be gonner...haha

damn apple...smart ass

not only that.... it might be able to detect those Cydia and Installer app in your jail broken phones..

hahaa.. time to revert into 1.1.x?

too advance is not good. can we accuse apple for breach of privacy if that happens ?

hehe.. that's why I still maintain FW 1.1.4 in my original iPhone, as recommended by Zibri..

I think Apple will get their butts sued again. Trust me

it is possible to sue them for the breach of privacy act as with this, they might be able to obtain information and data from us without our consent.

I don't know about the US, but in NZ the privacy act is pretty strict, and so are some other commonwealth countries

And dev team also wont sit calm on this and sure developing some kind a firewall or sumthing

nooo..i just starting to update my iphone...zzZz

Wow...can't believe it..

Thank God i stay on 1.1.4 ..

yeahh, firewall with content filtering built-in?

breach of privacy..haihz..i stay with 1.1.4 la

hek-eleh.
storm in a teacup.
IF
I ever find apps on my iPhone go missing, I will definitely sue Apple, for breach of privacy. I mean, its my phone, i will put whatever I feel like putting in la.
They don't have any right to come in to my stuff without a warrant.

IF NOT
if it never happens... then OK la... some of you guys are lucky and got 1.1.4, I have iPhone 3G so I can never use installer or all those 3rdparty apps T_T

hi everyone. i just upgrade my 16gb iphone from 1.1.4 to v2.0
system working more stable, call successful rates is 95%. preview is 60%. program is more stable. google map is more powerful and it is imediately detect your location once u run the program. 20 langue added with hand writing. video supporting auto rotate. have fun brother...

http://gizmodo.com/5034707/iphone-app-blac...-disabling-apps

Read that, it's actually protecting third-party apps from using Location Services and knowing where you are. Basically it's protecting your privacy, not deleting your apps. That's breach of privacy.

izzit the annoying pop-up asking for location services when certain apps activated?
i use to turn off then Location services

Yup, the pop up menu.