A U.S. legislator sent a letter inquiring how two tech giants manage fraudulent cryptocurrency apps in their respective app stores. The senator addressed the letter to the CEOs of Apple and Google. He expects a response by August 10, 2022.
Fraudulent Cryptocurrency Apps Have Been Proliferating
Senator Sherrod Brown wrote the two letters, addressed to Tim Cook and Sundar Pichai, on July 27. The senator chairs the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. In the letter, Brown asked about the measures being taken by both companies to prevent the proliferation of fraudulent crypto apps in their app stores.
In the letter addressed to Cook, Sen. Brown cited reports about fake crypto apps that have scammed hundreds of investors.
In recent years, crypto trading platforms and exchanges have experienced a surge in popularity with millions of investors downloading mobile apps to trade and invest in digital assets. Millions of Americans use mobile apps to invest in unregulated digital assets, including cryptocurrencies. Crypto mobile apps are available to the public through app stores, including Apple’s App Store. While crypto apps have offered investors easy and convenient ways to trade cryptocurrency, reports have emerged of fake crypto apps that have scammed hundreds of investors.
The senator also mentioned the need for Apple to ensure that the App Store has proper safeguards in place to prevent fraudulent mobile apps. Specifically, the letter asked Apple to respond to five clarificatory points related to how the App Store handles fraudulent crypto apps.
Five Key Points that Apple Needs to Respond To
The senator also requested Apple’s response to the following five points by August 10, 2022:
- The App Store’s review process before approving crypto apps,
- The steps the App Store takes to prevent cryptocurrency apps from circumventing policies to facilitate phishing,
- The systems and processes that Apple has in place for users to report fraudulent apps,
- The actions that Apple has taken to alert people about actual or potentially fraudulent activity related to cryptocurrency investment apps.
- Whether the App Store coordinated or shared any actions or activities with other app stores related to the suspension or removal of fraudulent crypto apps.
Ed. Note: the included image is not meant to indicate the apps depicted are in any way fraudulent. It is only representative of the wide range of cryptocurrency apps available on the App Store.