Recently there have been growing calls for Apple to allow third-party app stores for the iOS and iPadOS platforms, which would enable a process known

Exclusive: Apple makes its case against iPhone app sideloading

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2021-06-23 13:00:07

Recently there have been growing calls for Apple to allow third-party app stores for the iOS and iPadOS platforms, which would enable a process known as “sideloading”—installing an app on a device that originates outside of the official App Store.

Proponents argue that Android allows sideloading, so Apple should too. Allowing users to install apps on their iPhones and iPads without Apple serving as an intermediary would alleviate concerns about its App Store rejections and fees, which have been part of an ongoing drama since the first authorized third-party iPhone apps debuted 13 years ago. Sideloading would also weaken arguments that Apple’s control of the App Store amounts to an illegal monopoly.

But many security experts—and fans of Apple’s privacy features—find such a proposal alarming. It’s true that Android allows sideloading, but sideloading is one of the main reasons that Google’s mobile operating system is so riddled with malware. Bad actors know that if they want to attack an Android device, the easiest way to do so is to hide it in a sideloaded app disguised as, for example, a popular anti-virus app or even an Android system update. Once the app is installed on the Android device, it can then inject the malware payload, such as ransomware.

To help the public better understand Apple’s stance on sideloading, the company has released its newest privacy white paper, which focuses on the topic. In advance of the paper’s release, I spoke to Apple’s head of user privacy, Erik Neuenschwander, about the practice and why Apple—judging from our conversation—remains vehemently opposed to it.

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