Apple Cracks Down on COVID-19 CoronaVirus Related Apps

With the spread of coronavirus across the world, apps have been popping up that are not recognized by institutions like governments or hospitals.

iPhone maker Apple is now cracking down on such apps related to the virus that are not recognized according to a new CNBC report.

Four independent iPhone developers told CNBC. that Apple rejected their apps, which would allow people to see stats about which countries have confirmed cases of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Some of these apps used public data from reliable sources like the World Health Organization (WHO) to create dashboards or live maps. Some developers asked not to be named to avoid further complications with Apple’s review process.

One of the developers had said that an Apple employee said that anything related to the coronavirus must be released by an official health organization or government. Another developer got a written response that “apps with information about current medical information need to be submitted by a recognized institution,” according to a screenshot seen by CNBC.

“Right now the technology industry is working very hard to ensure the platforms are not being used to provide people with false or, even worse, dangerous information about the coronavirus,” said Morgan Reed, president of the App Association. “We are seeing significant pressure inside and outside to halt applications and advertisements before they harm citizens.”

Disclaimer: We have no position in Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and have not been compensated for this article.