Q. App Store Rejection 5.1.1 Data Collection

Question

After 2 months of updates, I finally got this app store rejection in my last version update:

Legal - 5.1.1

We noticed that your app requires users to register with personal information prior to accessing non account-based features, which does not comply with the App Store Review Guidelines. Specifically, It would be appropriate to make registry optional at launch for services that are publicly accessible on the website.

Why is this happening to me, when Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, etc all require users to login first before viewing publicly accessible content (accessible from web browsers)? Is there special treatments for huge billion dollar apps now in App Store? I had no problem with Android play store..

Uncommonly

How did you fix it? What was the solution? – Riverhead

Answer 1

1. Why is this happening to me

   Because you're in breach of section 5.1.1.ii of the App Store Review Guidelines:

   5.1.1 Data Collection and Storage

   (ii) If your app doesn’t include significant account-based features, let people use it without a log-in. Apps may not require users to enter personal information to function, except when directly relevant to the core functionality of the app or required by law. If your core app functionality is not related to a specific social network (e.g. Facebook, WeChat, Weibo, Twitter, etc.), you must provide access without a login or via another mechanism. Pulling basic profile information, sharing to the social network, or inviting friends to use the app are not considered core app functionality.

2. Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, etc all require users to login first before viewing publicly accessible content (accessible from web browsers)

   Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest are all social networks with very "significant account-based features".

3. Is there special treatments for huge billion dollar apps now in App Store

   Nope.

4. I had no problem with Android play store..

   Well the Android play store plays by its own, completely unrelated, set of rules.

Promoter

From web browser, I can access Instagram's, Pinterest's content without login. How do you explain that now? what significant account based features ? – Uncommonly

My app is free and i provide useful content for my users, in exchange, i only want their email address and name, i don't get how that is a violation. – Uncommonly

Just because they have some (very tiny) part of their feature set available to anonymous users, doesn't mean they don't "include significant account-based features". – Promoter

Does that "useful content" depend on account information? – Promoter

The idea behind this policy is that your app has to offer sufficiently many accounts based features so as to justify the risk you pose to user data. – Promoter

Viewing people's images on instagram and pinterest are not very tiny in my opinion, since those images are the only content people want to see. You only need to be logged in to post pictures / like / comments... More over, those pictures are generated by public. In my case, I have built a business listings that people can browse, at my own expense, for free, i just need their email addresses so I can actually market / sell my product to them.. – Uncommonly

@Alexander: If my app is a complicated RPG game and user must create account with username/password only. No personal information such as email, phone number...Do you think Apple review team can have a mistake So i can appeal? – Saviour

@NamTrung I would use UIDeivce.identifierForVendor as a login, in place of a username/password, so that users can directly jump in without needing to sign up for anyhting – Promoter