In January this year, the Senate approved an antitrust regulation that would require Apple to allow sideloading of apps on the iPhone and iPad. Ahead of the US Senate Judiciary Committee considering the bill on Thursday, Apple has sent a letter urging them to reject it.
In its letter, Apple says the bill would harm the security and privacy of millions of its users and make it easy for social media companies to bypass many of the security measures of the App Store. Apple’s head of government affairs in the US, Tim Powderly, wrote the letter that was sent to Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin and ranking Republican Chuck Grassley.
“We are deeply concerned that the legislation, unless amended, would make it easier for big social media platforms to avoid the pro-consumer practices of Apple’s App Store, and allow them to continue business as usual,” Tim Powderly, the company’s head of government affairs in the Americas, wrote in the letter.
“Sideloading would enable bad actors to evade Apple’s privacy and security protections by distributing apps without critical privacy and security checks,” he said. “These provisions would allow malware, scams and data-exploitation to proliferate.”
Apple has been opposing the bill since it was proposed saying it would make it “nearly impossible” to protect consumer privacy. It would also be a “big win” for bad actors and developers who collect and sell user data and put “millions of Americans” at risk. If passed, Apple would be forced to allow iPhone users to sideload apps on their iPhone or iPad. This, in turn, will enable them to bypass the App Store, thus robbing the company of the 15-30 percent commission that it gets on every transaction.
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