Once again, a program suspected of being a scam is circulating in the App Store, with which – so far unmolested by Apple – millions have apparently been made. The well-known developer Kosta Elftheriou criticized this on Twitter. The makers behind a tool are said to have collected up to 13 million US dollars, which is supposed to connect loudspeakers in the area via Bluetooth “to boost the sound”. The app, which was free for years, now charges a subscription price of $10 per week, which is withdrawn after a three-day trial period.
Numerous reviews apparently wrong
The makers behind the problematic app apparently hope that the customers will not notice the absurdly high fee and that they will continue with the subscription for the time being. As usual, it can be accessed via the Cancel settings on iPhone, iPad or Mac with one click – as provided under the Apple operating systems. According to Elftheriou, the criticized program has over 50,000 reviews, giving it an overall rating of 4.3 stars – better than Apple’s in-house music app.
Many of these are allegedly fake without Apple taking any action – or they date back to when the tool was free. Current “real” reviews, on the other hand, are mostly negative and even call on Apple to remove the app. In the meantime, the program reached number 18 in the music section of the US App Store.
Not the first time
The case of the expensive “volume booster” is far from the first time such controversial programs have made it through Apple’s App Review. Eleftheriou has been known as an app store critic for years, repeatedly discloses scam programs and is also involved in a direct legal dispute with Apple over fraud in the online store, which affected him himself because one of his apps was simply copied and expensive had been sold.
This week there were also incidents with clone programs of the currently popular game “Wordle” that flooded the App Store. While the original can be gambled on the web for free, developers recreated it – also under the original name – and sold it with in-app subscriptions via Apple’s software store. In the meantime, however, the group is said to have deleted the clone apps.
(bsc)
