Apple Thwarts $2B In Fraud Transactions — But Third-Party App Store Debate Rages On

Apple Inc. AAPL shared stats on App Store’s efforts to prevent fraud and maintain privacy ahead of its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, or WWDC. 

What Happened: On Tuesday, Apple announced that its App Store thwarted potential fraudulent transactions amounting to over $2 billion in 2022, alongside rejecting approximately 1.7 million app submissions for failing to meet the privacy and security standards of the app marketplace. 

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While making the announcement, the Cupertino, California-based tech giant repeatedly emphasized that its security measures, such as the App Store review process, were instrumental in preventing fraudulent transactions. 

The company underscored that it safeguarded users from almost 57,000 questionable apps from unofficial stores lacking the same inherent privacy and security features as the App Store in 2022. 

The Tim Cook-led company also highlighted the effectiveness of its payment technologies in preventing transactions. It revealed that nearly 3.9 million stolen credit cards were blocked from making fraudulent purchases and 714,000 accounts were banned from transacting again. 

Additionally, Apple stated that 400,000 app submissions were rejected, citing privacy violations. 

The company also terminated over 428,000 developer accounts and rejected nearly 105 million program enrollment for suspected fraudulent activities as well as more than 282 million customer accounts associated with suspected or abusive behavior. 

Why It’s Important: The latest stats shared by Apple come at a time when the tech giant is pressured to open iPhones and iPads to third-party app stores. 

Last year, the EU passed the Digital Markets Act, forcing tech companies to allow alternative app stores on their platforms by 2024. The act provides developers with a choice in app distribution and users the ability to download apps from different sources. 

It was previously reported that Apple was preparing to allow alternative app stores on its devices to comply with the upcoming requirements, with changes expected to be launched with iOS 17 during the WWDC event. 

The tech giant has long argued against “sideloading” — the process of installing an app on a device without using the official App Store, stating that it would expose users to security risks. The same argument has been central to Apple’s feud with Epic Games. 

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