- The frequent disappearance of crypto apps from the Apple App Store continues to raise concern among users.
- An expert provides insight into why these incidents keep happening.
- Improved developer-user relations could help minimize the risk of users falling victim to scam clone applications.
In recent years, a worrying dynamic appears to have emerged between crypto-focused applications and the Apple App Store. Against a backdrop of disputes over high taxes on in-app purchases, there is also an emerging trend of crypto applications inexplicably disappearing from the platform for hours at a time, sparking confusion and concern amongst users.
What could cause this continued friction facing crypto apps on the App Store?
Concerning Disappearing Acts
A little over the past 24 hours, Bitget’s mobile application disappeared from the Apple App Store with no explanation for six hours, sparking concern amongst its users and rekindling fears over a growing trend of unexplained crypto app disappearances on the platform.
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About three months before, in October 2023, a similar situation was observed with MetaMask’s application. At the time, developers had assured users that the problem was unrelated to a security incident without providing insight into the cause of the application’s disappearance.
And before MetaMask, it was Trust Wallet in 2022.
The trend is significantly concerning as it inconveniences users and increases their chances of falling prey to scammers who put up fraudulent clone apps. These concerns are compounded by the fact that the reason for these seemingly random disappearing acts remains unclear.
Fast Shifting Regulations to Blame?
Speaking with DailyCoin, Sergey Sheleg, chief product officer at Nicegram, a primarily iOS-facing app, suggested that rapidly changing regulations and Apple’s sometimes transparency wanton requirements were likely to blame for the issues faced by crypto apps on the App Store.
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"Because the field of crypto is so innovative and fast-evolving, a feature that is compliant today might inadvertently breach App Store guidelines tomorrow as the regulatory landscape changes, potentially leading to the unexpected removal of an app."
Sheleg opined that the evolving dynamics made it challenging for developers to anticipate how the App Store will receive new application features. As such, he contended that developers needed to be as detailed as possible with their app descriptions to help minimize future occurrences.
He also recommended transparent and consistent communication between developers and users beyond the App Store to minimize the risk of users falling victim to scams via clone applications.
On the Flipside
- Crypto applications appear to be facing less friction on the Google Play Store as in many instances where apps have disappeared from the Apple Store, they have still been available on the Play Store.
Why This Matters
The reason for the frequent disappearance of crypto applications from the Apple App Store has continued to elude crypto community members.
Read this for more on the brief disappearance of the Bitget application from the Apple App Store:
Bitget Joins Crypto Apps Getting Apple’s Temporary Boot
Learn more about FTT’s reaction to FTX’s decision to abandon plans to restart:
FTT Tanks 35% After FTX Gives up on Exchange Reboot Plans
