Apple blocked $7 billion in fraudulent App Store purchases in 4 years

Apple’s latest fraud prevention analysis reports blocking $7B in potentially fraudulent App Store transactions from 2020–2023 (including $1.8B in 2023), detecting 14M stolen cards, and blocking 3.3M accounts. In 2023, it reviewed 6.9M app submissions, rejected 1.7M for privacy/security/content issues (including spam, hidden features, piracy, bait-and-switch, and potentially fraudulent apps), terminated 118K developer accounts, and removed 152M fake reviews. Despite controls, two high-profile fake apps (impersonating LastPass and the Leather crypto wallet) slipped through; Apple commits to continued investments in anti-fraud and advises users to stick to the App Store, scrutinize reviews, favor reputable developers, manage permissions, and keep devices updated.