Apple reveals how it plans to change how apps work on the iPhone – and says they will make users insecure

New European Union rules will make phones across the continent less secure, Apple claims.

The EU’s Digital Markets Act, or DMA, is about to come into force and aims to introduce new controls on big tech companies and give their customers more choice.

For Apple, this includes a host of changes, including allowing users to use alternative app stores to download apps from Apple’s official store. It will also need to allow apps to use alternative payment methods.

Apple recently announced that it intends to comply with these rules and provided details on how it will do so. But at the same time he criticized the new rules and said they would bring new dangers.

Now he has revealed more details about how the processes will work – as well as warning that they will make people insecure.

They mean that even if people don’t want to use new technologies, such as alternative app stores, they could be forced to use them, it claims. He pointed to school or business apps that could be placed in these alternative app stores – giving people little choice but to use potentially unsafe new ways to download apps.

The iPhone maker published a new white paper, outlining how it will introduce new features to protect users from cyber attacks, malware and other risks under this new system, but the company said it cannot completely eliminate the risks.

Until now, only apps approved by Apple to appear in the App Store were available for download on the iPhone, and purchases from the App Store had to be made through Apple’s own payment system – a so-called “walled garden” that Apple claims allows for complete user security and their data.

In its new report, Apple warns that because it is being asked to change its “uniquely successful approach” used to “protect user security and privacy,” it “will not be able to protect users in the same way.”

“In order to continue to offer users the safest, most privacy-protected and most secure platform – consistent with what users expect from Apple – we have designed and implemented new safeguards to help protect and inform them,” the document reads.

“While the changes required by the DMA will inevitably cause a gap between the protections that Apple users outside the EU can rely on and the protections available to EU users in the future, we are working tirelessly to ensure that iPhone remains the most secure of all phones available in the EU by reducing the risks that these necessary changes – although we cannot completely eliminate such risks.”

Under the new system, Apple says it will introduce a new core review program for all apps, regardless of whether they are distributed through the App Store or an alternative app marketplace.

Apple says it will electronically sign any app distributed in the EU after it has been verified and cleared of “known malware and security threats, generally works as advertised and does not expose users to outrageous fraud.”

However, the company has confirmed that these new checks will not cover app content.

And he warned that content he doesn’t allow inside the App Store could appear inside its iPhone operating system in the EU.

“This means that Apple will not be able to block apps with content that Apple would not allow in the App Store – such as apps that distribute pornography, apps that encourage the consumption of tobacco or vape products, illegal drugs or excessive amounts of alcohol, or apps that contain pirated content (or that otherwise steal ideas or intellectual property from other developers) – so they don’t become available on alternative app markets,” the white paper says.

But the US tech giant has promised “continuous monitoring” of apps to detect and remove any malicious apps it detects.

Under the new system in the EU, Apple will also start showing users pop-up warnings on the screen when they are about to leave the App Store to download an app or make a payment outside of the store and Apple’s payment system.

The company said this will allow users to make “educated decisions about the apps they download.”

Apple said it had been contacted by consumers, governments and government agencies inside and outside the EU seeking assurances and clarity on platform security under the new rules.

A number of other tech companies have previously accused Apple of maintaining a monopoly over the app market by not allowing competing app markets or payment methods on the App Store.

The European Commission claims that DMA offers more and better services for consumers to choose from and increases opportunities to switch providers if they wish, which will ultimately lead to fairer prices and encourage innovation in the sector.

Additional agency reports