You don't have to be easily offended to be an iPhone app approver, but it helps

happygeek 0 381 Views

Someone at Apple really does need to take a closer look at how they choose the people who work as iPhone application approvers, either that or take a chainsaw to the approval process guidelines and start again but when sober this time.

Look, much has been written about the madness that is iPhone app approval. Remember the fuss about a bouncing Barack Obama or the South Park application which were banned in case they offended anyone, for example?

While these examples are enough to make you wonder if the app testers jump and scream when confronted by their own shadow, the strange case of Eucalyptus really does suggest they get someone to go through the daily newspaper with a magic marker to remove anything vaguely worrying before reading it each morning, such a state of permanent nervousness they must be in. Eucalyptus is an ebook reader app, pretty harmless you might think. Surely it would fly through the approval process as long as it actually worked according to the Apple developer guidelines? It did, work that is not get approval.

Why did this ebook reader client not get approval? Well according to it was because it could be used to view pornographic material. Not that it contained any porn, you understand, but because one of the ebooks you could download and view with it was the Kama Sutra. The client itself comes with no content, but it can download titles from the 100,000 strong Project Gutenberg database. And it was there that the Kama Sutra was to be found. Not that this stopped Apple, which requested the developer remove it from the downloadable content list, in desperation he added a filter to block users searching for it. Apple then presumably found someone wearing long trousers and who can be trusted with sharp objects and be app was approved.

Mind you, not all iPhone app approvers are easily offended, some are just a sandwich short of a picnic. Take the twit who thought that the shake a baby to death app was fine until the media got hold of the story and Apple changed its mind.

C'mon Apple, isn't it about time you got this process sorted? It really isn't rocker science after all.

Dani AI

Generated

As observes, the surprise in many App Store rejections has less to do with a buggy binary and more to do with how reviewers judge what an app can access or enable. Apple’s review emphasis on safety and “objectionable content” means an app that can surface third‑party material may be treated as if that material were bundled with the app — even when it is not. (developer.apple.com)

Practical steps that reduce the chance of that kind of rejection:

  • Ship safe defaults: disable broad public searches or make potentially sensitive content opt‑in rather than on by default.
  • Document sources and controls in the App Review notes: explain where content comes from, how it is indexed, and the filters or age gates in place.
  • Provide a demo account or a simple built‑in demo mode and give exact reproduction steps so reviewers can exercise the relevant flows.
  • If the app relies on remote content, include sample URLs or shortlists of allowable sources and say how removal/blacklisting is handled.

These submission practices map directly to App Store Connect guidance (demo accounts, fully functional back ends, clear metadata) and shorten the back‑and‑forth with reviewers. (developer.apple.com)

When a rejection happens, treat the App Review message thread as the primary record: reply there with screenshots, step‑by‑step reproduction, test credentials, and a concise list of safeguards already implemented. If the outcome still seems incorrect, use the documented appeal path rather than public escalation; Apple’s docs describe both the messaging flow and the appeal option. Keep the tone factual and supply reproducible evidence. (developer.apple.com)

A final note of caution: attempts to hide or obfuscate risky behavior are likely to backfire. Clear metadata, conservative defaults, and transparent communications with App Review are the most reliable way to get past overly cautious decisions without endless resubmissions.

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