Apple Pay Support Disabled For Websites Selling Neo-Nazi Gear

Certain white supremacists websites can no longer accept payments using Apple Pay following Apple's disabling of the support. Apple confirmed the news this week via a spokesperson, who pointed toward the Apple Pay guidelines that prohibit use for sites determined to be spreading intolerance, hate or advocating violence. This move follows multiple other companies that have revoked support for various racist websites.

The Apple Pay support was disabled for websites selling racist items online, including things like white pride bumper stickers and nazi-themed tee shirts. A total of three neo-nazi websites have had their Apple Pay support disabled, though it isn't clear if any others have followed since the news first surfaced.

Confirmation about the business move was given to Buzzfeed, which says that the sites affected include 'americanvikings.com' and 'vinlandclothing.com.' The third website, which isn't named, is said to have already been taken offline. Whether the other sites will remain online is unclear, though both are hosted by GoDaddy, which recently took issues with one big neo-nazi domain.

One of the domains, americanvikings.com, had its Facebook page revoked on Wednesday, according to a statement that its owner gave to Buzzfeed. A number of other companies have moved to address online destinations that harbor white supremacists, including Discord, which took down a major alt-right server, Facebook and Twitter, GoDaddy, Google and Cloudflare.

The decision to revoke or otherwise suspend service to destinations like this have proven controversial, with some arguing that the preservation of free speech is more important than squashing any particular white supremacist destination. Others disagree, fearing that such websites provide fertile ground for dangerous ideologies to grow.

SOURCE: Buzzfeed