A new report by CNBC reports that Apple is rejecting apps submitted for App Store approval related to Coronavirus (COVID-19) that have not been developed by health organizations or government institutions. According to the information, the company is trying to prevent the spread of false information with this policy.
Four independent developers told the CNBC that their COVID-19 apps, designed to show statistics about which countries have confirmed new cases, have been rejected.
According to one of these developers, one of Apple’s employees said that anything related to Coronavirus needs to be “disclosed by an official health organization or government”. He was also warned that «applications with information about current medical data need to be submitted by a recognized professional or institution».
Apple even revised its App Store guidelines, including an amendment specifically related to this:
Applications in “highly regulated” categories, such as healthcare, financial services or air travel, need to be submitted by a legal entity that provides the services, not by an individual developer.
Searches for “Coronavirus” and ‌ “COVID-19 ″ ‌ on the App Store yield few results, including the HEALTHLYNKED COVID-19 Tracker, which uses data from the World Health Organization (WHO), the Epoch Times news app and a Brazilian government application – which we commented on earlier this week.
Other technology companies have taken similar measures to prevent the spread of false information. THE Facebook it’s the Twitter, for example, banned deceptive ads related to Coronavirus; already the Google has adopted a policy against apps that capitalize on “natural disasters or tragic events”, so there are no Coronavirus-related apps available in your app store in the United States.
THE Amazon, in turn, restricted the practice of “Price gouging” on items like masks and hand sanitizer.
It’s worth remembering that it’s possible that Apple WWDC 2020 in a very different way after authorities in Santa Clara County (California, USA), where Apple holds its event, recommend that large companies cancel their events and conferences, among other activities.
via 9to5Mac
