Recently, I have been receiving complaints from people who said they purchased a "pro version" of my app for $34.99 on the Apple App Store (for iOS - even though there is no iOS version of our app).
The App Store listing uses our app icon, the exact app name and has even tacked a (TM)-symbol to it. It seems to be AI-generated slop and I'm not sure if it provides any functionality at all.
I reached out to Apple via their trademark complaint form a week ago. All they seem to have done so far is forward my complaint to the author of the scam listing.
So, here is my question for folks who have been in a similar situation: Does Apple genuinely not care about fake apps in the App Store - or is there a better way to report them?
Which of these is it?
> I reached out to Apple via their trademark complaint form a week ago. All they seem to have done so far is forward my complaint to the author of the scam listing.
What else would you expect them to do in that period? You told them “App X is breaking trademark Y that I own and I didn’t give them permission to do so”. They can’t take that at face value, so they asked for a rebuttal. A week isn’t too long a period to give them to reply, isn’t it?
So Apple should really be taking action on both counts, in my opinion.
OK.
> when it isn’t
Isn’t that what Apple must check and may be doing by “All they seem to have done so far is forward my complaint to the author of the scam listing” (depending on how they worded that)?
Also, all you formally complained about is a trademark infringement. Global trademark law is complex. Maybe somebody else managed to get a trademark with the same name, too? I guess that’s unlikely, but Apple can’t assume that.
Which is precisely why I asked if there's a better way to report scam apps that I might have missed. But unfortunately it doesn't seem to be the case and you don't seem to have an answer either.
https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/basics/how-much-does-it-cos...
If he did have a trademark he could go to Apple and say specifically "this is a case of trademark infringement" and probably not need a lawyer but he'd also have the basis for a civil lawsuit.
Your case reminded me the ledger fake app that was available there and lead to some millionaire losses.
Even more unfortunate is that the android store also isn't free from this risk =/
Ah, almost forgot, I wish good luck solving this issue!