Apple recently sent a letter to the European Commission (EU) criticizing recent investigations into whether the App Store complies with the Digital Services Regulation (DSA). This letter comes after separate requirements of the Digital Markets Regulation (DMA) that Apple has been called upon to implement .
The Commission asked Apple for information on how it detects fraudulent content, what it does to reduce the risk of financial fraud in its apps and how it verifies the identity of businesses. It also asked for details of Apple's policies to protect minors. Both requests were part of an investigation into whether the companies were complying with the requirements of the Digital Services Regulation.
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Apple: Conflicting App Store Regulations
Apple's response, signed by the company's Vice President of Legal Affairs, Kyle Andeer, answers all of the EU's questions and includes relevant information to satisfy the request. However, it also points out the hypocrisy of questioning the App Store's protectionswhen Apple is required to support sideloading functionality that is not subject to those protections.
Andeer says it is “difficult to reconcile” the DSA investigation withaggressive interpretation and enforcement of the Digital Markets Regulation” the EU’sdefies all logic” in light of the DMA’s requirements. He also argues that the European Commission should enforce the DSA and DMA as a whole, rather than treating them as separate policies.
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Specifically, the letter states:
“It makes no sense for the Commission to pressure Apple to protect users, including minors, from fraud within the App Store while at the same time requiring Apple to create features, such as external links and web views, that increase the risk of fraud without the necessary protections.
The Commission cannot prohibit Apple from taking the measures it has found necessary to reduce the risk of fraud in the App Store, while at the same time examining Apple for not providing even more measures to reduce those risks in the App Store. It makes no sense for an EU law to encourage Apple to reduce as much as possible the risk of consumers being exposed to fraud or minors to potentially dangerous apps through the App Store, while there is another EU law that prevents Apple from using the same measures to reduce the same types of risks simply because they exist outside the App Store. This paradox creates a regulatory structure that supports exposing iOS and iPadOS users to risk if they choose not to use the App Store, when developers choose to use external links, or when users choose to use third-party products to work with iOS or iPadOS.
If the Commission does not consistently prioritize protecting consumers from online risks or minors from online risks such as pornography or other unsafe applications, across all enforcement frameworks including the DMA, and if it does not use the tools at its disposal to resolve these fundamental frictions, the objectives of the DSA will be underachieved, regardless of how adequate Apple’s measures to comply with this specific regulation are.”
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The Digital Services Regulation requires very large online platforms, such as Apple, to offer protection against disinformation or election manipulation, cyberbullying against women, and risks to minors online . It also has provisions to tackle fraud and reduce the spread of illegal content , among other requirements.
The separate Digital Markets Regulation requires Apple to support alternative app marketplaces and adhere to interoperability rules that Apple has consistently argued weaken privacy and security. Andeer says the Digital Markets Regulation “exposes users to fraud” on third-party platforms, and has warned the EU that enforcing the DMA is “irresponsible, even dangerous.”
Apple's App Review team removed 37,000 apps for fraudulent activity in 2024, rejected 115,000 apps for unsafe experiences , and rejected 320,000 app submissions that copied other apps , were found to be spammy , or otherwise misled users. Additionally, 139,000 developer registrations were rejected and 146,000 developer accounts were terminated due to fraud concerns.
