Engadget brings some really disturbing news today. It seems that Reddit users exposed shady iOS fitness apps that are using the Touch ID feature on iPhones and iPads in order to scam people and get their money.
Two problematic apps
“Fitness Balance app” and “Calories Tracker app” were active on the App Store until just recently because now it seems that Apple removed them.
Just like their genuine counterparts, they were promising to calculate the users’ BMI, track the daily calorie intake and remind them to drink more water.
But it seems that these apps were at the same time also using a cunning trick which was fraudulent. This trick was tied to the iOS Touch ID sensor.
While the apps were asking to secure your personalized diet data by scanning your fingerprint, they would display a pop-up showing a payment of $119.99.
With just a few seconds left to act, this scam could easily see users handing cash from their connected debit or credit cards, notes Engadget.
The online tech publication writes that people have reported the apps to Apple and this probably led to their removal from the Store.
.@AppleSupport this app called Fitness Balance is trying to scam people out of $100+ dollars by tricking them into purchasing their in-app purchases. It is unacceptable this app managed to get on your App Store. pic.twitter.com/I68vwQoG86
— Jacques Fourie (@Jac4e) November 29, 2018
Apple didn’t release any official note
Apple, on the other hand, did not release any official statement regarding what happened and why have the apps been taking down from the online Store.
It’s important to note that “In its developer guidelines, Apple forbids apps that “prey on users or attempt to rip-off customers, trick them into making unwanted purchases, force them to share unnecessary data, raise prices in a tricky manner, charge for features or content that are not delivered, or engage in any other manipulative practices within or outside of the app.” Developers who break the rules risk being banned forever, warns the company.”
Apple has a really solid track record when it comes to the App Store security, and it’s pretty weird that now something managed to slip through the cracks.
After finishing Theatrical Journalism at the Faculty of Theatre and Television in Cluj-Napoca, Rada reviewed movies, books, theatre pieces and she also wrote articles from the IT niche as a content editor for software producers. At the moment, she is working with various online advertising firms.
