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A top-grossing scam on the App Store

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Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#71

Post by tolmasky »

ProjectArcturis wrote: post #59
tolmasky wrote: post #54

Apple has just engineered the worst possible situation for themselves by being the only way to get apps on the store and by simultaneously incessantly marketing the store as "Safe and Secure". The former encourages them to maximize the number of apps on the store, while the latter encourages them to shoot first and ask questions later. If side-loading or alternative ways of getting apps onto the iPhone existed, then…

If they allowed side-loading, they might not capture 30% of revenue from apps sold through the app store. If they disallowed scams, they might not capture 30% of the scammers' revenue.

I actually believe that if they allowed side-loading it would be one of the best ways to guarantee that they continue capturing 30% of revenue in perpetuity. This is because they could actually for the first time make developers feel like they're getting something for that 30%, as opposed to it being an "existence tax". Apple could actually with a straight face say "hey, you don't HAVE to be on the store, try doing it on your own". This is much different than the current Hobson's Choice of "you don't have to be on the store, you could just not have an app" which feels increasingly shallow in a duopoly, which gets to another important point: they'd actually have a fantastic argument for regulators: competitors really do have choices other than Apple! It would be very hard to argue that Apple should cater to your app that they don't like when there is another way to deliver that app to all the same customers (that doesn't involve first convincing them to switch platforms).

I honestly believe that some sort of side-loading option would be best for any cynical Apple interests long-term and for developers and for users.

The current course of action just leads to developer frustration (which is fine until a disruptive player enters the market), a super shitty store that leaves customers pissed (with scams, etc.), constant churn in rules to try to appease everyone and kick the can another 2 years (like the 15% reduction), and worst of all, unwanted attention from regulators that could have chaotic effects.

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#72

Post by fortran77 »

simonw wrote: post #60

I got scammed on the App Store a couple of weeks ago. I needed the SmartThings app for some Samsung home automation devices, searched for it, and installed this one: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/smart-things-smart-view-app/id... When it charged me a $20/year subscription (now cancelled) I thought "Wow, Samsung charging me for this feels pretty cheap of them, but I guess that's how they do things - after all, I found…

It's because of this issue I've learned to never search for a manufacturer or company app in the app store. I go to the company's website and see if I can find an app store link to it there.

It's nearly impossible for anyone--even the most savvy user--to identify which app is the real one and which one is a deceptive one.

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#73

Post by mdoms »

jjtheblunt wrote: post #9

The assertion in that title is patently false click-bait. Apple definitely cares about its customers being driven away from them. That doesn't mean they've caught all scams, or more importantly in this case have managed to automate detection of them all, definitely not as fast as folks online identify them. Also note that there are entire classes of scams that never get click baity titles because Apple DOES detect th…

Did you even read the thread? Apple is aware of this because they already took the step of removing fake reviews from the app. You don't think they took 5 minutes to read the legit reviews, or do you think they did read them and they didn't raise any alarm bells?

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#74

Post by zepto »

fsflover wrote: post #69
zepto wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Obviously not. They simply aren’t a meaningful target for scams the way the iOS store is.

Yes, they are. Go look how many servers run GNU/Linux.

What does that have to do with a billion consumers of iPhone apps?

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#75

Post by planb »

simonw wrote: post #60

I got scammed on the App Store a couple of weeks ago. I needed the SmartThings app for some Samsung home automation devices, searched for it, and installed this one: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/smart-things-smart-view-app/id... When it charged me a $20/year subscription (now cancelled) I thought "Wow, Samsung charging me for this feels pretty cheap of them, but I guess that's how they do things - after all, I found…

Apart from the subscription scam, I don't see a problem here. Just imagine the comments here if Apple had rejected a legit app just because it has "Smart Things" in the name.

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#76

Post by jjtheblunt »

simonw wrote: post #61
jjtheblunt wrote: post #9

The assertion in that title is patently false click-bait. Apple definitely cares about its customers being driven away from them. That doesn't mean they've caught all scams, or more importantly in this case have managed to automate detection of them all, definitely not as fast as folks online identify them. Also note that there are entire classes of scams that never get click baity titles because Apple DOES detect th…

I would hope that the trust and safety team at Apple are sorting apps by revenue-generated-per-month and investigating the ones at the top of the list first.

I bet they will now.

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#77

Post by Apocryphon »

jjtheblunt wrote: post #76
simonw wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would hope that the trust and safety team at Apple are sorting apps by revenue-generated-per-month and investigating the ones at the top of the list first.

I bet they will now.

Customer Support via Twitter/HN/social media.

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#78

Post by mdoms »

Shivetya wrote: post #57
heavyset_go wrote: post #4

Apple and Google are poor stewards of the mobile app distribution market. It's time that their 13+ year stranglehold on app distribution is disrupted.

Do you even understand the volume of apps they deal with? Apple claims 100k a week[0]. How do you propose to handle that? People are complaining about a small number of bad apps getting through and at the same time we have quite a few stating that not allowing people to load up anything they want is bad. Can you imagine trying to sort through the mess if there was no gate keeper because there is an actual chance if p…

> Do you even understand the volume of apps they deal with? Apple claims 100k a week[0]. How do you propose to handle that?

Is this a serious question? The answer is: by hiring people. Lots of them. Apple has over $200 billion just in cash in the bank.

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#79

Post by Despegar »

ProjectArcturis wrote: post #59
tolmasky wrote: post #54

Apple has just engineered the worst possible situation for themselves by being the only way to get apps on the store and by simultaneously incessantly marketing the store as "Safe and Secure". The former encourages them to maximize the number of apps on the store, while the latter encourages them to shoot first and ask questions later. If side-loading or alternative ways of getting apps onto the iPhone existed, then…

If they allowed side-loading, they might not capture 30% of revenue from apps sold through the app store. If they disallowed scams, they might not capture 30% of the scammers' revenue.

There's no reason to think that the cut would be any less than 30% even if they allowed side-loading. People just assume it would be like the Mac, but Apple isn't required to license its technology to anyone for free.

Re: A top-grossing scam on the App Store

#80

Post by hans-moleman »

55555 wrote: post #38
golergka wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Users don't read and just click on things.

I can see you are being downvoted but this is literally how this works. People install things and click rapidly thru the startup screens. These apps generally get legal consent from everyone who is billed, they just either didn't read it or forgot to cancel.

A big issue I see is from the switch to Face ID from Touch ID. With Touch ID you actually had to put your finger on the sensor to confirm payment. Now with Face ID that dialog just becomes another OK you accidentally press and your face gets scanned before you even realize what’s happening.
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