Apple Offers Developers Clarification on Some App Privacy Data Reporting Requirements

Apple today informed developers that it has introduced additional guidance for App Store privacy labels, a feature that Apple has been requiring for all apps since December.

app store privacy labels iphone 12
Apple says that rules surrounding data types like email, text messages, and gameplay content have been expanded to make it easier for developers to understand and comply with requirements.

Additional details have been published on completing your App Store privacy labels, including more information about data types, such as email or text messages, and gameplay content. You'll also find more information about data collected in web views and data that may be entered by users within documents or other file types.

On its developer website, Apple has a detailed list of the kind of information that developers must provide for their apps, and explanations of the types of data collection that must be disclosed.

Data collection for tracking purposes, third-party advertising, marketing, and other reasons must be disclosed to users, and developers are required to self-report using Apple's guidelines. As of December, Apple has been requiring ‌App Store‌ developers to provide App Privacy label information to submit new apps and app updates to the ‌App Store‌.

Apple does not check the data that each app submits, and in January, The Washington Post found more than a dozen apps providing inaccurate or misleading data in their privacy labels.

Apple said in response that it is subjecting developers to routine and ongoing audits of information provided. The company works with developers to correct inaccuracies and has said that apps that fail to disclose accurate privacy information may have future updates rejected or could be removed from the ‌App Store‌ entirely.

Popular Stories

iOS 26 on iPhone Feature

Here's When iOS 26 Rolls Out Today in Every Time Zone [Update: Out Now!]

Monday September 15, 2025 12:00 am PDT by
Update 10:06 a.m.: iOS 26 is rolling out now, though it may take a bit for all users to see it, so keep checking! Today's the day! Apple is about to release iOS 26, which will deliver the biggest redesign since iOS 7 and bring a range of new features and improvements to iPhones worldwide. It's Apple's biggest software update of the year, and Apple announced at last week's iPhone event that...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Reportedly Plans to Launch These 10 Products in 'Coming Months'

Sunday September 14, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple's annual September event is now in the rearview mirror, with the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, Apple Watch SE 3, and AirPods Pro 3 set to launch this Friday, September 19. As always, there is more to come. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple plans to release many products in the...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

Apple Says Installing iOS 26 Might Impact Battery Life

Monday September 15, 2025 10:56 am PDT by
In the iOS 26 release notes, Apple is warning iPhone users that installing the new software might have a temporary impact on battery life, which is normal. A new support document explains that major iOS updates require background setup like indexing data and files for search, downloading new assets, and updating apps. Further, Apple says that new features could require more resources,...
iphone 17 lineup

iPhone 17 Models Launch on September 19 With These New Features

Friday September 12, 2025 7:58 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 lineup and ultra-thin iPhone Air in stores on Friday, September 19, and the company has already shown off the new devices at its fall event, which ran with the the tagline "Awe dropping." The iPhone 17 series brings a host of new features and enhancements. Here's a rundown of the biggest upgrades and changes: iPhone 17 Display Changes The iPhone...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 Get iOS 26 Features With New Firmware Update

Monday September 15, 2025 10:50 am PDT by
Apple today released updated firmware for the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4, introducing support for the new AirPods features that are included in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS Tahoe. The firmware has a build number of 8A356, and it replaces the current 7E93 firmware. With Apple's new software updates, the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4 support better audio quality for phone calls and...
apple n1 chip

Apple's New N1 Chip in iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Has a Wi-Fi 7 Limitation

Saturday September 13, 2025 10:01 am PDT by
The latest iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air models are equipped with Apple's all-new N1 chip for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread connectivity. However, the chip has a Wi-Fi 7 bandwidth limitation. According to FCC documents reviewed by MacRumors, the N1 chip in all of the new iPhone models supports up to 160 MHz channel bandwidth for Wi-Fi 7, short of the...
iPhone 17 Pro Air Boxes

iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Boxes Revealed

Sunday September 14, 2025 1:36 pm PDT by
T-Mobile President Jon Freier today shared real-world photos of Apple's boxes for the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 models, which launch on Friday. Image Credit: Jon Freier Apple has typically included iPhone box renders in its product environmental reports, but it did not do so for the latest models. However, Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program page does offer some images of the boxes, ...

Top Rated Comments

icanhazmac Avatar
60 months ago

Apple said in response that it is subjecting developers to routine and ongoing audits of information provided. The company works with developers to correct inaccuracies and has said that apps that fail to disclose accurate privacy information may have future updates rejected or could be removed from the App Store entirely.
Excellent, thank you Apple! Without consequences devs will just lie/omit.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
aesc80 Avatar
60 months ago

If Apple does not check the data that each app submits, what is to stop developers from lying about their privacy label sans Apple doing a random audit? I may be missing something here but, that lack of follow-up with each app defeats the purpose of moving towards more transparency and privacy, in my opinion.
It's sort of random, but normally there is a good amount of checking that's done. That being said, it's difficult to check every submission that goes through Apple Connect for compliance. It's definitely one job I'm glad I'm not doing (but also tip my hat to those at Apple that do).
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MacBH928 Avatar
60 months ago
The privacy labels is a joke. you can't understand it. Its so vague. For example the Gmail app says:

Purchases: What purchases, Its an email app not a store front.
Identifiers: Like what? My IP address or my DNA?
Other Data: Yes, ok I got it.
Search History: What search history? From the Safari browser? Chrome? My computer? TV?

add to that you can never know whats going on in a closed source program.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apple_Robert Avatar
60 months ago
If Apple does not check the data that each app submits, what is to stop developers from lying about their privacy label sans Apple doing a random audit? I may be missing something here but, that lack of follow-up with each app defeats the purpose of moving towards more transparency and privacy, in my opinion.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Daveoc64 Avatar
60 months ago

If Apple does not check the data that each app submits, what is to stop developers from lying about their privacy label sans Apple doing a random audit? I may be missing something here but, that lack of follow-up with each app defeats the purpose of moving towards more transparency and privacy, in my opinion.
Apple can't check what happens to the data - it's simply not possible.

As the article says, the privacy label is intended to tell users when their data is used for purposes like marketing and ads. The privacy label system has different sections to cover the different ways in which data can be collected and used.

If an app only uses your email address to send you password reset emails and nothing else, that can be declared in one place on the privacy label. If the app uses email addresses to track you for advertising purposes, that goes in a different place. If the app only uses email addresses in exceptional circumstances (e.g. when filling out an optional feedback form), the app may not need to declare that it collects email addresses at all.

Apple can't verify what happens to the data once it goes to the app developer's servers. If they say it's just for logging in, Apple has to trust that, unless proven otherwise.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ?️ Avatar
60 months ago
Release iOS 14.5 already please ?
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)