Holiday shoppers beware, there has been a recent surge in fake iOS apps looking to deceive iPhone users. In fact, hundreds of fake apps masquerading as the real thing have flooded Apple’s App Store in recent weeks. The counterfeit apps were somehow able to sneak past Apple’s stringent app evaluation process, and many are malicious attempts by criminals to take advantage of shoppers looking to make purchases from their smartphones, according to The New York Times.
They do this in various ways. Some of the apps are relatively harmless, and simply bring in revenue to criminals by displaying pop-up advertisements. Other more malicious apps may ask users to input credit card information, login with their Facebook profile, or even use malware that could steal sensitive private data from smartphone owners, according to Fortune.
The apps mimic retail chains and department stores such as Dollar Tree, Footlocker, Dillard’s and Nordstrom. There are also apps that pretend to be associated with Zappos or Polyvore, or even luxury clothing and lifestyle brands such as Jimmy Choo, Salvatore Ferragamo and Christian Dior. Most of the apps seem to have originated from developers based in China.
The fake apps were first discovered by Branding Brand, a Pittsburgh-based mobile analytics company that helps companies build, track, and maintain their retail apps. CEO Chris Mason told the New York Times that this is the first time that that they had seen such a plethora of fake apps appearing in a short span of time.
It’s not exactly clear how these counterfeit apps were able to make it past Apple’s strict review process. The process is one which the company has long prided itself on, and is meant to weed out apps that contain deceitful software, illegal intellectual property usage, and harmful malware. But the process does seem mostly to focus on blocking malware to protect the security of the iOS devices itself. Cupertino reportedly doesn’t make a habit of checking each individual app to see if it is truly associated with a particular company or brand, and instead relies on complaints or reports of copyright infringement, according to AppleInsider.
“We know that many of you work hard to build innovative apps and update your apps on the App Store with new content and features,” Apple said in a press release. “However, there are also apps on the App Store that no longer function as intended or follow current review guidelines, and others which have not been supported with compatibility updates for a long time.”
Apple’s cleanup process is ongoing. The company has since removed hundreds of app since the New York Times inquired about the counterfeits. Apple’s removal of the fake shopping apps coincides with a larger effort to remove abandoned or broken apps from the App Store.
Featured Photo Kaspars Grinvalds / Shutterstock.com
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