Apple CEO Tim Cook has long emphasised that it must maintain control over software distribution on iPhones, lest the App Store devolve into a "flea market."
Scams, however, can be found among the 1.8 million apps on the App Store. Customers of various VPN apps that claim to protect users' data claimed in Apple App Store reviews that the apps informed them that their devices had been infected.
Customers are tricked into paying $4.99 per week for a service that is currently included in the iPhone camera app via a QR code reader app that remains on the store. Some apps falsely claim to be from well-known companies such as Amazon and Samsung.
Roughly 2% of the top 1,000 grossing apps on the App Store are frauds. According to market research firm Appfigures, those apps have defrauded consumers out of an estimated $48 million in the time they've been on the App Store.
The magnitude of the problem has never been revealed before. Furthermore, Apple reaps the benefits of these apps because it takes a 30% share of any income made through the App Store.
According to The Washington Post's investigation, "fleeceware" apps that employ fake user evaluations to boost their rankings in the App Store and give them a feeling of legitimacy to persuade users are even more popular.
