// Privacy NEWS // Why Did Apple Remove Several Parental Control Apps from the App Store?

vijbzabyss (69)in #news • 5 years ago (edited)

Accused of competing with the screen time functionality of iOS 12, they would in fact exploit users' personal data.

Has Apple taken advantage of its position to remove competing parental control applications from the App Store from its screen time functionality? This is what the New York Times reported on April 27, noting that 11 of 17 such applications had been removed by Apple from its online store.

Except that Apple totally denies the accusation and explains its approach in a statement published on April 28: these applications violated the privacy of users by accessing their personal data.

Apple had warned publishers

Many parents found themselves in trouble when they saw that the app they used to manage their children’s access to their iOS devices had disappeared from the App Store. But according to Apple, its decision has nothing to do with any competition.

“We have recently removed several parental control apps from the App Store for one simple reason: privacy,” explains Apple in its statement.

“Over the last year, we became aware that several of these parental control apps were using a highly invasive technology called Mobile Device Management. MDM gives a third party control and access over a device and its most sensitive information including user location, app use, email accounts, camera permissions, and browsing history [… ]

Beyond the control that the app itself can exert over the user's device, research has shown that MDM profiles could be used by hackers to gain access for malicious purposes.” , justifies the brand.

Unlike what the New York Times claims, Apple explains that it warned developers of these applications by giving them 30 days to make them comply with the guidelines of the App Store. Those who did not act therefore had their application removed from the shop.

Protection of personal data above all

Last September, Apple introduced the new “Screen Time” feature with iOS 12. It not only allows you to control the amount of time spent on your device but also to control the access given to children to the various applications of an iPhone or iPad.
It thus competes with the many other similar applications available on the App Store, hence the suspicion cast on Apple by the New York Times article.

For several years now, Apple has also been a champion of the protection of its users' personal data, making itself very different from other Silicon Valley companies.

Sources : New York Times and Apple

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