The reputational damage is worth more only if there is reputational damage to begin with.
There may have been some smaller isolated stories in the past, but the truth about App Store scams is really only now coming to light - and so Apple’s calculus might be changing.
Apple themselves seem to be intentionally breaking the App Store at times. From the article:
> Apple used to have a button [1], just under the ratings and reviews section in the App Store, that said “report a problem,” which allowed users to report inappropriate apps. Based on discussions among Apple customers on Apple’s own website [2], the feature was removed some time around 2016.
Why would they remove the ability for people to easily report apps?
Not only is the App Store broken, Apple themselves seem to be intentionally breaking it at times. From the article:
> Apple used to have a button, just under the ratings and reviews section in the App Store, that said “report a problem,” which allowed users to report inappropriate apps. Based on discussions among Apple customers on Apple’s own website, the feature was removed some time around 2016.
Why would they remove the ability for people to easily report apps?
That’s unclear. A couple of things to consider, both of which are helping scammers currently:
- A lot of users let their guard down because they blindly trust Apple’s marketing, and scammers take advantage of that.
- The fake ratings and reviews are making this even worse by leading people to believe other people have found some of these scams valuable.
I can see how a more trustworthy ratings system and a more honest marketing of the App Store for what it really is, could lead to fewer scams, even if Apple doesn’t control the App Review process so tightly - or doesn’t control it all.
And as the article points out, Apple’s marketing coupled with fake ratings and reviews that plague the App Store can “create the perception for the public that they are safe downloading an app or buying a product and engaging in content that other people have found valuable” (emphasis mine)
Thanks.