On Thursday, Apple told app developers that it would require them to provide publicly viewable information about their app’s privacy and data policies for the App Store, starting December 8.
The concept of the “nutrition label” is inspired by labels that list ingredients and caloric content on a product. The App Store’s app labels will help give users a better idea of what is going on inside an app before they download it from the App Store. These labels will list what information an app collects, and present that visually on the app page.
Developers can now submit privacy info for App Store nutrition labels
In an update to its developer webpage, the tech giant said that app privacy information can be added via the App Store Connect app. It will become a requirement for all iOS 14 apps starting December 8:
“Later this year, the App Store will help users understand an app’s privacy practices before they download the app on any Apple platform. On each app’s product page, users can learn about some of the data types the app may collect, and whether that data is linked to them or used to track them. You can now enter your app’s privacy information in App Store Connect. This information will be required to submit new apps and app updates to the App Store starting December 8, 2020.”
According to the new guidelines, developers will need to provide information about all the data that they might be collecting from an app. That includes payment information, email addresses, home addresses, health data, and other types of information.
Furthermore, the App Store labels will need to let users know what happens to that data, whether it’s linked to a user, and whether it’s used to track users across other apps and platforms. However, some types of data do not need to be disclosed. Data that isn’t used for tracking purposes or advertising can be excluded from the labels.
Providing vital information in bite-sized pieces like these labels will be very beneficial in helping users to stay informed on how their phone tracks them and what is happening with their personal information.
The tech giant will roll out this feature for the App Store later in 2020 and developers can start submitting their apps’ information now ahead of the December 8th deadline.
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