U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Another Antitrust Bill That Would Allow Sideloading on iPhone

[BradWI]

Apple should start restricting most of their APIs only to apps that go through official channels like the App Store.

Want to make your own app store or have people sideload your app to avoid paying Apple money? Fine, but no notifications, etc. Just a set of barebones APIs. Have fun with that.

If the developers don't want to help pay for the billions Apple puts into iOS development, don't let them benefit from that work.

 

[vertsix]

I'm a proponent of sideloading and would like to see Apple do it, but I get that they would need to make it hard for users to sideload, to avoid the least common denominator of iPhone users to sideload and cause security and privacy risks (like grandma getting spoofed into downloading Facebook++++++ from an ad) that are already present on Android, as it is relatively easy to sideload there.

This is how I can imagine it they should do it (and yes, this will make it harder to sideload than on Android, that's the point):

- Sideloading should only be controlled by a switch that must be activated on a computer, Finder on Mac and iTunes on Windows
- When the switch is turned on, a factory reset is required. The user will be prompted for an iTunes or Finder backup. (This is so the secure, walled state of the device is ensured in backups)
- AppleCare(+) coverage and support is limited unless the sideloading switch is turned off, again through a Windows PC or Mac, requiring another factory reset. A factory reset on device when the sideloading switch is on automatically would turn it off.
- Backups are disabled when the sideloading state is enabled
- Certain iCloud and secure iPhone functionality could be disabled for security (like iCloud Keychain and the like, if it is indeed at risk by sandboxed apps)

I feel like this would be a compromise and doing sideloading right.

 

[4jasontv]

The iPhone is quite dissimilar from an underpowered car. Analogy doesn't fit, but they rarely do.

Odd analogy. I’d actually love a hitch on my Leaf, not to tow an RV but to be able to bring a few sheets of drywall home from Home Depot

The analogy is fine. Different tools for different jobs. You don’t need to side load apps on a mobile device, and if you think you do you are as wrong as people who use a pickup as a commuter vehicle.

 

[HiVolt]

This is just sad. Third-party app stores sound like a great way to get the malware. Say goodbye to privacy and security.

Our privacy will be on the line and we will be exposed to the malware. I really hope Apple will find a way to stop this. The government should really stay out of this.

Like it's been said, nobody will force you to use anything but the App Store. That should be the default option.

 

[IG88]

If this goes through the next committee will be about how Apple fails to protect users from malware due to the side loading.

Never fear! Apple promises us that sideloading on Macs is totally safe and worry free!

From the Mac OS Security webpage:

Download apps safely from the Mac App Store. And the internet.​

Now apps from both the App Store and the internet can be installed worry-free. App Review makes sure each app in the App Store is reviewed before it’s accepted. Gatekeeper on your Mac ensures that all apps from the internet have already been checked by Apple for known malicious code — before you run them the first time. If there’s ever a problem with an app, Apple can quickly stop new installations and even block the app from launching again.

 

[Syk]

Disappointed in my Senator over that one.. Android exist if one wants to sideload and honestly iOS and Android are both petty much the same now. Pretty much any main stream app is on both devices

I won't be sideloading so it won't effect me but the way Apple been lately with bugs in iOS makes me wonder if it'll open a door for a person to load something on a persons device unknowingly.

 

[Cosmosent]

Bravo !, didn't think they had the Fortitude to do so, but so glad they did !

 

[MacLawyer]

It has been suggested that Apple can simply close the App Store as we know it today and reopen a closed store. Apple could purchase the apps it wants from devs and sell a subscription plan, just like Playstation, et al.

 

[Zaft]

If Apple loses then just make a gatekeeper like on Mac OS. Set it to block third party stores by default and warn the user when they try to disable it.

Apple was against 3rd party keyboards for a while but now If a keyboard wants full access there is a warning.

 

[44267547]

They do allow sideloading on the mac. They don't want it on the iPhone or iPad. It's their decision. Hopefully this goes nowhere.

That’s my concern though. I think this does go somewhere, likely in the wrong direction. This is way more of a significant issue than most understand, especially to the unknowing consumer.

 

[huge_apple_fangirl]

This bill has a lot of problems as-written, but hopefully a revised version passes. Everyone focused on iPhone but this would be amazing for iPad- it’s been held back by iOS’s limitations for so long.

 

[Analog Kid]

The U.S. Congress is a privacy & security risk. Maybe we should reject them? That aside, Apple's arguments are moot considering they allow side loading on the Mac.

Edit: Apple also allows alternate app stores on the Mac.

Wow, the whataboutist argument got pulled out in the first page!

 

[kcslc]

If this is happening, I want to be able to Sideload to a Tesla, Prius, Mazda, Ecobee, etc.

I want to be able to install whatever firmware I want on my vehicles and devices without voiding my warranty.

Do these car manufacturers have more than 50 million US users?

 

[nt5672]

This is going to force Apple to stop investing heavily into the App Store. They should tell these congressmen the unvarnished truth. If they decrease profitability of their platform they will stop investing in it or start charging all developers for access whether their app is free or not based on the number of Apple API calls per month. Many of the small developers will close and the Epics and Microsofts of the world will be able to charge what they want because they won’t have to compete with the little guys anymore. It’ll be like the old days for them. Just what they want.

Actually just the opposite, Apple will finally have to fix search and try to attract competition. This is good for everyone.

The status quo is Apple does just enough to get by.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I think what Apple will need to do is limit access to the core of iOS that third parties are able to access.

They.
Already.
Do.
That.

 

[gnipgnop]

A. The Senate should already be aware that the vast majority of Android users DON'T use side loading, so claiming that side loading significantly improves "choice" doesn't fit the statistics.

B. The Senate appears to have the mistaken belief that every app will be available through both options, when the reality is that the majority of apps will only have one option for consumers to use.

 

[Rafagon]

How come this article was marked "Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts," but yesterday's article on the same topic wasn't?

MacRumors, you're slipping!

 

[turbineseaplane]

Side loading would be code signed and still sandboxed and all the normal data access and privacy restrictions would remain in effect.

There is no threat to user security by allowing side loading in this way.

The only threat is to Apple and their App/iAP revenue extraction operation.

Apple are gas lighting everyone.

 

[danakin]

This is just sad. Third-party app stores sound like a great way to get the malware. Say goodbye to privacy and security.

Our privacy will be on the line and we will be exposed to the malware. I really hope Apple will find a way to stop this. The government should really stay out of this.

As other have mentioned numerous times, the solution is really quite simple.

1. The default is App Store only
2. Users who elect to can check a box to allow downloads from alternate sources (like the Mac)
3. Multiple Warnings are presented
4. Users are required to accept an amended EULA limiting their Warranty and or Apple's liability
5. Users get treated like adults by Apple (not always the case) and life goes on

Choice is a good thing.

Just my $0.02

 

[DeepIn2U]

Not a good day for consumers… politicians at their best - useless as usual…

Sad that these rulings were not so steadfast back in the 90's when wanting to breakup Microsoft across 13 states.

 

[4jasontv]

Do these car manufacturers have more than 50 million US users?

Def not Tesla, but I am curious why user number means anything. What happens when Tesla reaches 50 million? Would the have to retroactively change their products or would new rules apply to all new Teslas?

 

[Cartaphilus]

A marketplace is not a trust. Apple simply offers what it believes to be a reasonable means of offering the intellectual property of a developer in a manner that seeks to ensure that the developer has not sufficiently overlooked weaknesses that open the end user to malware and other unwelcome problems. It's highly doubtful that the 20 members of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary (average age 64) are sufficiently knowledgeable about the dangers that are presented to end users of computer programs when there are insufficient safeguards. Politicians are, however, quite familiar with the contributions often made to senators' election committees that just turn out to be donated by those who benefit from welcomed decisions made by those same politicians. The choice should be made by end-users who generally regard Apple as being more effective in protecting them than most other app stores.

 

[DeepIn2U]

Side loading would be code signed and still sandboxed and all the normal data access and privacy restrictions would remain in effect.

There is no threat to user security by allowing side loading in this way.

The only threat is to Apple and their App/iAP revenue extraction operation.

Apple are gas lighting everyone.

You're assuming sideloading will keep the app sandboxed. Is it possible it would not? I mean why else does jailbreaking existed in the first place?

 

[WiseAJ]

Hope the government remembers this when it leads to a major cyber terrorist attack crippling the country.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Just make iOS behave like macOS and the problem is solved.

Do all of you realize the same Apple has already solved the privacy, security and app data integrity issues for third party sources Apps on their own macOS platform?

Apple -- who is throwing out unjustified fear -- already has the roadmap to solving the problems they are trying to scare everyone with.

They literally are pissing in your face and telling you its raining.
Don't fall for it.