In an ongoing effort to enhance transparency and foster trust among developers and customers, Apple has released its highly anticipated “2022 App Store Transparency Report.” This comprehensive report provides detailed insights into app removals, appeals, developer account terminations, government takedown requests, and more. What Apple has shared goes beyond the requirements of previous agreements with shareholders and developers, demonstrating the company’s commitment to accountability and security.
More than 185,000 apps were also removed from the App Store
App rejections and removals form a significant portion of the report’s findings. Over the course of the year, a staggering 1,679,694 app submissions were rejected. These rejections were primarily attributed to violations of the App Store Review Guidelines, with performance-related issues being the most prevalent at 1,018,415 rejections. Other categories included safety (92,598), business (152,391), design (212,464), legal (441,972), and miscellaneous reasons (79,736). However, amidst a large number of rejections, 253,466 apps managed to gain approval following the initial rejection.
The report also sheds light on the number of apps removed from the App Store, amounting to 186,195. These removals were categorized by app type, with games (38,883) taking the lead, followed by utilities (20,045), business (16,997), education (16,509), and lifestyle (15,171). The removals were carried out primarily due to violations of specific guidelines, with guideline 4.0 on design (149,3787) and DPLA 3.2(f) on fraud (32,009) being the most common reasons.
Notably, the report reveals that apps are removed only from storefronts where the jurisdiction demanding their removal has authority, ensuring their availability in other storefronts worldwide. The report discloses specific government takedown demands, with mainland China leading the list (1435), followed by India (14), Pakistan (10), Russia (7), and several other countries.
The transparency report also provides valuable insights into developer account data. With a total of 36,974,015 registered Apple developers, the report reveals that 428,487 developer accounts were terminated. Fraud (428,249) and export control violations (238) were the primary reasons for account terminations. While developers have the option to appeal terminations, the report highlights that most appeals from terminations due to fraud are typically rejected.
Apple’s commitment to customer security is evident in the termination of 282,036,628 customer accounts, preventing fraudulent transactions valued at a staggering $2,090,195,480. The average weekly visitors to the App Store amounted to 656,739,889, with app downloads reaching 747,873,877, and app redownloads totalling 1,539,274,266. Additionally, there were an average of 40,876,798,492 automatic app updates and 512,545,816 manual app updates each week.
Apple’s 2022 App Store Transparency Report serves as a testament to the company’s ongoing dedication to maintaining a secure and reliable App Store ecosystem. By providing granular details on app rejections, removals, account terminations, and more, Apple aims to bolster trust among developers, shareholders, and customers alike.
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(Via)
