Apple now rejects app updates that ignore iOS 14.5 app tracking transparency rules

According to a new report from Forbes, Apple has begun rejecting app updates that do not comply with the App Tracking Transparency Rules, which the company will enforce starting with iOS 14.5. Apps must ask for permission to access the advertising identifier, or IDFA, of a user's iPhone in order to track users between apps for ad targeting purposes, and apps will need to comply with this rule when iOS 14.5 is launched. The rule also prevents apps from using other workarounds to track users, which has already caused trouble for some developers.

Several apps have been rejected, Forbes listed Heetch, Radish Fiction, InnoGames, etc. After seeing the rejection of the app, developers will receive the following message. "Your app uses algorithmically converted device and usage data to create a unique identifier for tracking users." The information also lists the data collected.

Eric Seufert, a mobile marketing analyst, said that an SDK of mobile measurement company Adjust was problematic because it collected data from device fingerprints. Adjust, which is installed in more than 50,000 apps, says it can "maximize the impact of mobile marketing."

Apple is banning apps that use fingerprinting technology to collect data in order to build user profiles and track users even without an advertising identifier. The data collection uses metrics such as software version, time since last update, time since last restart, charge level, battery status, etc. to identify individual users.

Apple's position is that if a customer refuses to use IDFA for ad tracking, then that user also refuses other tracking methods. Apple's App Store rules state that app developers cannot collect data from devices for the purpose of identifying them, and developers are responsible for all tracking code in their apps, including any third-party SDKs they use.

Adjust has now updated its SDK to remove code that accesses data such as CPU type, phone memory, charging status, and battery level. Therefore, apps that were rejected for using Adjust may be allowed to update after installing the new Adjust SDK.

It’s unclear when Apple plans to officially release iOS 14.5, but we’ve had six beta versions so far, and the software will be available to the public sometime in the spring. As the App Tracking Transparency rules begin to be updated, it’s possible that Apple is preparing for the release of the software, so we might be able to see it debut in the near future.