Right now, Apple is on its knees in an antitrust case against Epic Games, with the results likely to change Apple’s digital storefront forever. But, Apple is taking today to promote how the App Store helps keep users safe.
Today, Apple announced that the App Store has done a lot of work to stop the fraud. Specifically, the digital storefront stopped more than $ 1.5 billion in “potentially fraudulent transactions” throughout 2020. Apple says this is a clear sign that the App Store is a “safe place”. and trust ”.
The company notes that the threats have been present in the App Store since day one and have only become more sophisticated and numerous in the years since. The company has taken “relentless steps” to address these risks, both for the end user and for developers.
From the ad:
It takes considerable background resources to ensure that these bad actors can’t exploit users’ most sensitive information, from location to payment details. While every act of fraud or malicious intent cannot be detected before it happens, thanks to Apple’s anti-fraud efforts, security experts agree the App Store is the place to be. safer to find and download apps.
In 2020, Apple says the review process rejected more than 48,000 apps “for containing hidden or undocumented functionality.” Over 215,000 applications have been rejected for “breach of privacy.” The App Store has prevented more than 3 million stolen cards from being used for purchases. 424 million failed account creation attempts.
The company closed 470,000 developer accounts last year, and 244 million customer accounts were also deactivated. And there were over a million banned “start over” accounts.
Apple also speaks at length about the app review process, pointing out how it all comes together to try and protect users. From the ad:
The App Review Team is a critical line of defense, carefully reviewing every app and update to ensure it meets the App Store’s strict guidelines for privacy, security, and privacy. spam. The guidelines have evolved over time to respond to new threats and challenges, with the goal of protecting users and providing them with the best experience on the App Store.
Apple’s goal is always to introduce new apps to the store. In 2020, the team helped over 180,000 new developers launch apps. Sometimes it takes a few tries. An app may be incomplete or not perform well when submitted for approval, or it may not yet have a sufficient mechanism to moderate user-generated content. In 2020, almost a million new problematic apps and almost a million additional app updates were rejected or removed for various reasons like these.
Apple goes into detail on other key parts of the iOS user protection process. This includes payment and credit card fraud, general account fraud, etc. It’s worth reading, if you have time.
But things haven’t always been that easy. Scam apps have absolutely climbed the App Store rankings over the years and at one point Phil Schiller was not happy with that reality. We recently reported that a customer was tricked by a scam app and lost hundreds of thousands of dollars. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to these apps.
Apple’s timing is obvious here. Apple’s fight with Epic Games is, in part, related to the safety and security that the App Store offers. Meanwhile, while Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney may admit there’s a lot of safety and security, it’s not the free market that he would like. Apple’s goal today is to promote the strengths of the App Store, but it remains to be seen if that actually makes a difference for people who would like a major change.
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