Apple App Store has alarming number of scams, says new report
Apple App Store has alarming number of scams, says new written report
Apple's App Shop is rife with scam apps, says a new report.
"Of the highest i,000 grossing apps on the App Store, about two per centum are scams," The Washington Post reported yesterday (June half-dozen), based on analysis conducted by its reporters. "Those apps have bilked consumers out of an estimated $48 one thousand thousand during the time they've been on the App Shop."
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Amongst the worst offenders were three VPN apps, which promised more than secure internet connections but delivered "scareware" ads designed to frighten people into buying fake iPhone antivirus software, and a QR-lawmaking reader that charges $v per week for a part that's already congenital into iOS. In that location were also 3 suspect dating apps.
"Apple tree profits from these apps because it takes a cut of up to a 30 pct of all acquirement generated through the App Shop," said the Postal service, which is owned by Amazon head honcho Jeff Bezos.
Of the xviii apps that The Post reported to Apple every bit scams, 12 had been removed by the time of the Post story'south publication.
Although Apple now has a Mac App Store for its desktop and laptop apps, the Post'due south story focused on iOS apps. It analyzed the top 1,000 apps as reported by Apple tree on April 21.
The Post's written report comes correct before Apple's WWDC 2021 briefing, at which the company is expected to unveil iOS 15, macOS 12 and mayhap new hardware. This is also two weeks subsequently testimony ended in the Ballsy Games vs. Apple tree vs. civil trial, during which Apple's tight control of the App Store was scrutinized. A determination in the case is expected after this year.
Apple insists that its firm control over the App Shop is necessary to protect users from malicious apps. There's no denying that the effort's been largely successful. Over the iPhone's 14-year existence, the number of "in the wild" instances of iOS malware has barely cracked double digits. Contrast that with Google'south Play Shop for Android, in which hundreds of malicious apps are discovered every yr.
It doesn't have to exist malware to be malicious
Only scams don't have to be malware. 1 software developer told the Post he paid $xix for an iPhone app in the App Store that said information technology was a remote control for a Samsung TV set, merely the app turned out to exist fake.
The software developer told the Mail that he assumed that any app in the App Store had to be genuine, considering it would have been reviewed by Apple.
"If people do believe or are not worried about being scammed, then at that place'due south going to be a lot of victimization," an economics professor told the Post. (The app was not i of the xviii that the Post found on its ain.)
That app, called "Smart Things: Smart View App," was even so in the App Store today (June 7). It claims to "Remote command your Samsung Smart TV" equally well equally "Cast Media Files from Dropbox & Google Drive" and "Search and cast your favorite music tracks," among other functions.
The app is free to download, only and then charges subscription fees on a weekly, monthly and yearly basis starting time at $ane.99. A "Lifetime" subscription is available for $19.99. The listed programmer, TV Cast Visitor Ltd., also makes apps that claim to be remote controls for Roku, Chromecast, Amazon Fire Stick and LG and Vizio (spelled "Vizo") Television receiver sets.
Seven similar apps fabricated by the same company are in the Google Play Store for Android. In that location is no contact information, or much data of any kind, on the Television receiver Cast company website, https://tvcast.in/. Registry data for the website domain proper noun was blocked.
In a separate Twitter thread yesterday, Mac and iOS software programmer Jeff Johnson said that the App Store is a perfect hunting basis for scammers.
"Everything about App Store that supposedly makes it easier for developers to attain and sell to customers makes it easier for scams," Johnson wrote. "In fact, information technology's easier for scams than for honest devs, because the latter won't buy fake ratings, reviews, write misleading descriptions, dispense keywords, etc."
I don't think most people sympathize the economics of scams.Everything about App Shop that supposedly makes it easier for developers to reach and sell to customers makes it easier for scams. In fact, it'due south easier for scams than for honest devs, because the latter won't buy fakeJune 6, 2021
"Nosotros hold developers to high standards to go along the App Store a condom and trusted place for customers to download software, and we volition always take action against apps that pose a damage to users," an Apple spokesperson told the Mail.
Tom's Guide has as well reached out to Apple tree for annotate, and we will update this story when we receive a respond.
Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/news/app-store-scams-wapo
Posted by: kellyforist.blogspot.com
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