Apple removes 256 iOS apps from its App Store. Is your app affected?

According to foreign media Ars Technica, Apple recently removed hundreds of apps that contained an advertising SDK called Youmi that collected users' personal privacy data. The advertising SDK was provided by a third-party application distribution company in China. According to the Searchlight detection tool, 256 iOS apps have been found to have integrated the advertising SDK, with a total download volume of more than 1 million times in the Apple official store.

SourceDNA researchers found that iOS apps that have integrated the advertising SDK will collect four categories of user privacy information, and all of this information will be kept on servers located in China. The following is a detailed list of the information collected by the SDK:

1. Application installation list

2. iPhone/iPad device platform serial number

3. Hardware Information

4. The Apple ID email address associated with the user

Apple has now issued a statement saying that the SDK violates our security and privacy guidelines. The Apple Store has deleted all iOS apps related to the SDK, and will reject apps containing the SDK from being listed in the future. However, Apple has not made public the list of these removed iOS apps.