Crime-reporting app Vigilante kicked off App Store over Apple's content concerns

At the heart of the app is the belief that mass surveillance makes the world a better, fairer place through the question: can injustice survive transparency?

It's quite hard to tell whether the Vigilante app is a functioning business or a teaser for a new episode of dystopian sci-fi series Black Mirror.

Launched in New York last week, it's designed to alert nearby users whenever a crime is reported to 911. Users can use that information to avoid the danger area - or go and film it with their smartphone to broadcast the unfolding crime.