Apple refused entry to almost one million “problematic” new apps and a further one million app updates for the App Store in 2020.
The stats were confirmed by the iPhone maker in a blog post detailing a number of protection measures it has in place and how they were utilised throughout 2020.
Specifically, it highlighted that as a result of this, the platform holder has stopped potentially $1.5 billion in fraudulent transactions.
With user data more of a concern than ever, the App Review team confirmed that it rejected over 215,000 apps for different sort of privacy violations. 48,000 apps were also declined for containing hidden or undocumented features.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom though, as Apple confirmed that it helped over 180,000 new developers launch apps across its store.
There are now approximately 1.8 million apps available on the mobile platform.
Scale and sophistication
“Threats have been present since the first day the App Store launched on iPhone, and they’ve increased in both scale and sophistication in the years since,” reads the blog post.
“Apple has likewise scaled its efforts to meet those threats, taking relentless steps forward to combat these risks to users and developers alike.”
Adding that: “While it’s impossible to catch every act of fraud or ill intent before it happens, thanks to Apple’s industry-leading anti-fraud efforts, security experts agree the App Store is the safest place to find and download apps.”
Apple is currently in the middle of a court case with Epic Games regarding how the App Store operates, with details about deals with platform holders being revealed in their droves.
Meanwhile, another case has been filed against Apple in the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) citing the 30 per cent margin charged on App Store payments.
