Apple Shares Updated App Store Review Guidelines for App Tracking Transparency

Apple today published new App Store guideline updates for developers, tweaking many existing guidelines and adding a new rule pertaining to the App Tracking Transparency requirement in iOS 14.5.

app tracking transparency prompt ios 14
The new 5.1.2(i) rule related to App Tracking Transparency requires developers to ask for explicit permission before tracking user activity, something that Apple has been planning to implement since iOS 14's release. Apple last week said that its App Tracking rules would be enforced starting with the next iOS update, which will be iOS 14.5.

5.1.2(i): Added: "You must receive explicit permission from users via the App Tracking Transparency APIs to track their activity. Learn more about tracking."

Coinciding with the new rule around App Tracking Transparency, Apple today highlighted the SKAdNetwork 2.2 and Private Click Measurement APIs that are available to developers as alternatives to more invasive user tracking methods.

SKAdNetwork 2.2 allows developers to display and measure ad effectiveness while preserving user privacy, while Private Click Measurement, an iOS 14.5 feature, lets ad networks measure the effectiveness of advertisement clicks within iOS apps that navigate to a website, but in a privacy-focused way.

App Tracking Transparency will be enforced when iOS 14.5 is released, and Apple has said that it expects the new update to launch in the early spring.

Apple's ‌App Store‌ Guidelines update also clarifies several existing rules and includes minor wording changes and tweaks, with a full list of changes available on Apple's developer site.

Related Forum: iOS 14

Popular Stories

apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Expected Later This Year With These New Features

Saturday July 12, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Rumors Faster Wi-Fi Support The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports ...
iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 16 New Features

Friday July 11, 2025 12:40 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are only two months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models. Latest Rumors These rumors surfaced in June and July:A redesigned Dynamic Island: It has been rumored that all iPhone 17 models will have a redesigned Dynamic Island interface — it might ...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 Complications

Apple Watch Ultra 3: What to Expect

Sunday July 13, 2025 10:30 am PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 is nearly over, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the Apple Watch Ultra 3:Satellite connectivity for sending and receiving text messages when Wi-Fi and cellular coverage is unavailable 5G support, up from LTE on the Apple Watch Ultra 2 Likely a wide-angle OLED display that ...
iphone 16 pro pro max

iPhone 17 Pro Models With BOE Displays Will Be Sold in China Only

Thursday July 10, 2025 11:59 pm PDT by
iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models with displays made by BOE will be sold exclusively in China, according to a new report. Last week, it emerged that Chinese display manufacturer BOE was aggressively ramping up its OLED production capacity for future iPhone models as part of a plan to recapture a major role in Apple's supply chain. Now, tech news aggregator Jukan Choi reports...
top stories 2025 07 12

Top Stories: iPhone 17 Pro Rumors, iOS 26 Beta 3, and More

Saturday July 12, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
The iOS 26 public beta release is quickly approaching, while developers have recently gotten their hands on a third round of betas that has seen Apple continue to tweak features, design, and functionality. We're also continuing to hear rumors about the iPhone 17 lineup that is now just about right around the corner, while Apple's latest big-budget film appears to be taking off, so read on...

Top Rated Comments

icanhazmac Avatar
58 months ago
Can't wait to say no! Thanks again Apple for this small step towards education and choice when it comes to tracking!
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
EmotionalSnow Avatar
58 months ago
Honestly, I am kinda hoping that Facebook intentionally ignores the user’s choice. Because then Apple would finally have a good reason to kick them off the App Store.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
scottishwildcat Avatar
58 months ago

Honestly, I am kinda hoping that Facebook intentionally ignores the user’s choice. Because then Apple would finally have a good reason to kick them off the App Store.
Apple have had numerous good reasons to kick them off before, such as when they did this ('https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/30/18203551/apple-facebook-blocked-internal-ios-apps') and this ('https://techcrunch.com/2018/08/22/apple-facebook-onavo/'). But they never have, because they know it would be terrible for business.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Davidglenn Avatar
58 months ago
Great news, it must be option if I want to be tracked. Life should be about choices.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
The_Gream Avatar
58 months ago

For many apps, People have the choice: be tracked and enjoy the app freely or pay.
Now people what to have the app free without giving anything back. It's kind of a robbery. It very clear on the UE pop-up what is done with their data. It's their choice they are tracked. They could pay 1$ but choose not tO.

Apple is all there about privacy. But this company has no moral... Not paying taxes, not respecting workers laws, treating Appstore employees as if they were thieves (even a watch "warehouse" where watches cost more than a car, more that a house is not treating their employees that way...). Using environment as a marketing, while they waste energy with the magsafe just for marketing, waste batteries resources for useless wireless devices...
I just want to say, I don’t always agree with Apple on some of the stuff they do, but they do a lot more for their employees and the people working in their supply chain than probably any other company in the world. Plus, they pay the taxes they are required to pay - there is a reason they have financial lawyers and supper smart accountants - stockholders would lose their **** if Apple didn’t make sure they paid only what they had to. Just because Apple is worth tons of money, everything they do gets shifted through a very fine tooth comb, and people who don’t seem to understand how the world works get all judgmental about stuff.
And this wasteful wireless charging that you seem to hate - sadly the consumers what it. BUT, to make it less wasteful Apple decided to use a magnetic system

consumer gets what consumer wants = money.
consumer DOESN’T get what consumer wants != money.

plus, that rant about how the people are treated - yeah it sucks for them right now - but their lives would be much worse without it. Also, if you want to go pointing fingers, then you need to be pointing at the massive consuming and wasteful Western culture that has been rampant since the post-second world war.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
InGen Avatar
58 months ago
Could someone clarify, does saying no inhibit an application from knowing what a phones ID is in the first place or does it only “prevent” them from using it for tracking purposes?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)